


Sweet Lies

by UNCONQU3R3D



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Abduction, Agent Kyungsoo, Captivity, Dark Chanyeol, Dark Character, F/M, Fearless Kyungsoo, Female Jongin, Hitman Baekhyun, Jongin is Jungin, M/M, Panic Attacks, Rich Chanyeol, Ruthless Baekhyun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-07
Updated: 2018-07-12
Packaged: 2019-01-10 07:32:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 43,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12294321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UNCONQU3R3D/pseuds/UNCONQU3R3D
Summary: Ex-detective Kyungsoo makes a mistake and ends up as a witness protection program agent. He hates being off the field and has only a few months left until he can be a detective again. But a sudden incident leads him to his new charge, a mysterious girl named, Jungin, who has witnessed a terrible crime committed by Chanyeol, a seemingly wealthy man with a clean record. The opportunity to catch - who could probably be one of the most dangerous men in Seoul - is appealing enough, but the arrival of overly friendly and curious neighbor, Baekhyun, puts more than one dent in Kyungsoo's plan to return to the investigation department.





	1. Under the Moonlight

Jungin was fired from her job that evening. She wanted to go home at once and cry herself to sleep, to hope that when she woke up, it'll all be a dream. But at the same time, she knew that her landowner would be waiting for her, demanding for the rent she had yet to earn. Which was why, she wasn't in a position to hope. Right after she gave herself a moment to collect her emotions, she started hunting for the job.

 

Trying to keep what little money she had left intact, she walked until her feet hurt in her heels. She plastered on a smile, bowed and did everything she could to hide the desperation she felt. And finally, she met an old lady with a brash mouth but kind soul.

 

"I'm old," said the ajumma, her frame creaking as she gave Jungin the tour of the low quality diner. "Three of my women have quit. I can't keep things in order and I can't pay you more than what I make. You'll have to work thirteen hours a day until the closing time. And only one day off each week regarding what suits me. Is it acceptable?"

 

Jungin looked around. The diner needed help. The sleazy, sweating chef had his head poking out of kitchen, checking Jungin out, lips slack lecherously. The tables, windows, even the private rooms reeked of mold and mildew. She smiled through the cringe. But she had nothing else to do. "It's acceptable." Her MBA degree was probably laughing at her right about now.

 

As she walked out of the diner, she realized that it was late. Nearly midnight. She'd walked far. And taxi fares would be touching the clouds about now. Luckily, she had managed to find comfy slippers from the ajumma. The streets felt darker now that all the establishments had started to close down. Greedy neighbors had also shrouded their homes in darkness, leaving just weak moonlight for her to walk through.

 

She almost ran into a bunch of high school kids drinking and smoking around the street corner. She tucked her hair back and shivered as she took a longer route. Maybe, that day was intent on making itself hard for her. The night, too. Because it didn't feel like the wrong place and the wrong time. It felt like she'd been led there because that night wished it so.

 

At first, she didn't even see what lied before her. But then, through the darkness, two shadows took forms. One man was running towards her. No, he was limping. He wore nice clothes, expensive three piece and shiny boots. He clutched a hefty briefcase to his chest as he tried to outrun the second shadow. A few houses had their porch lights on, and the first man came into view, one side of his face lighting up before getting thrown into darkness again. She saw blood on his temple.

 

The second shadow was taller. It walked behind the limping man as if it was taking a leisurely stroll in the garden. The man was relaxed, it was apparent from his posture, hands in pocket, measured steps, thuds of his boot hitting the bricked alleyway.

 

Jungin knew she was going to get caught in a horrible nightmare. The limping man was mere twenty steps away. She took a step back, and another, and felt her back hit a sign pole. Heart pounding, she stepped around it and hid behind it. She felt thankful suddenly for her tough situation and days spent in starvation. The pole wasn't wide, but she was slim enough to get away. She was also thankful for the darkness that night.

 

"Stop," the voice said. 

 

Jungin gasped and clamped her own hand on her mouth. Then slowly, she craned her neck just enough so she could take a look through the corners of her eyes.

 

"Running away will only make me angry." The voice was low, relaxed. It held a note of authority. This man was someone who knew that he had an effect on people.

 

The limping man stumbled as if shocked to hear it so close behind him. He hit the alley floor, nose first. Jungin felt a tear slide down her cheek. The briefcase slammed open, and something like papers spilled out. Jungin had been without money for so long that she almost didn't recognize the piles of papers. But when she did, she almost sympathized with the limping man. Despite his nice suit, he must have been desperate to steal something like that.

 

"CEO Jung," the voice said again, and Jungin was stunned at the laughter she heard in it. "Did you really think you could betray me?"

 

The man got himself onto his knees, chasing the fluttering bills with trembling hands. The thuds of the footfall suddenly went still as the tall man stopped a few inches behind the struggling fool. Jungin blinked, her eyes nearly bending into her skull as she tried to get a look. She could see the outline of a handsome face, with fairy like ears. A mass of dark curls tamed to a perfection with hair gel.  And then... a gun pointing at the back of the kneeling man's skull.

 

"I really liked you, CEO-nim. I won't sleep tonight because of this." And then, he pulled the trigger.

 

Jungin didn't hear the gunshot. But she knew, when the man fell again, hitting the bricks as his blood flew out. She bit her own palms, trying to keep her screams inside. She had to run. But she couldn't move. Her legs were ice. 

 

The tall, handsome man took a knee, eyes closed as if he was praying for the dead one. Then he tucked away his gun. And reached for the dead man's chest. Jungin almost thought that he was going to take the briefcase full of money, but instead, he rummaged through the dead man's coat until he found something. Hiding it in his fist, the man stood up and inhaled, throwing his head to the skies. A little bit of moonlight illuminated him. 

 

"And it was such a beautiful night, too," he remarked to himself. "See you in hell, CEO-nim."

 

The tall man turned tail, and started walking his slow, leisurely walk again. Jungin didn't move until he was nearly inaudible in the shadows. Shaking, she emerged from her hiding spot. Her feet made a sound, and she looked down. She'd stepped into something dark and wet. Just a few feet away, the man was still. His brains leaking out, something dark making it's way to the pool gathering in her feet.

 

Jungin was sobbing hopelessly now, trying to keep quiet. She turned around and started running. Somewhere a dog barked at her. But she kept running. Her heart was finally catching up to that one fact. She'd just seen a person die. She'd just seen a person killing another person.

 

She was never going to sleep again.

.

.

 

Kyungsoo was wondering just when he was going to get a call. And now there was Jongdae's nagging voice in his ear, as he moved around his apartment and tried to find clothes. He barely listened. He knew the basics already so it wasn't even informative.

 

This morning, the news channels had been going crazy over an incident at night. Apparently the CEO of Seoul's largest law firm had been murdered in an alley. But that wasn't the news that got everyone excited. Last night a girl had ran into the nearest police station and started screaming bloody murder. Well, screaming about a bloody murder - to be precise.

 

And now she was the potential witness. That's where he came in.

 

"Are you fucking listening to me?" Jongdae shrieked and Kyungsoo held the phone away from his precious ear.

 

"I'll be there in ten," he said and turned off the phone. He looked at the calendar on his way out. It was 10th October. Just eight more months and he will be back in the investigation department, in his beloved office, with his badge that declared him Detective Do. _Just eight months._ It felt like ages already.

 

He was once a renowned detective. But a single mistake had cost him his badge. He shot a civilian in self defense, and it later came out that the man had nothing to do with the crime they'd been investigating. That was three years ago. His reputation had saved him from expulsion, and he was demoted to a witness protection agent. Now he was renowned for providing protection to witnesses. In the last three years, he'd protected criminals, children, women, families, immigrants and ambassadors until their trials. He never failed. His new boss sang his praises each day.  He was a fucking golden child.

 

He hated it.

 

His life meant nothing if he couldn't be a detective. Like his brother and his father. The word agent left a sour taste in his mouth. 

 

"It's going to be a long day," he predicted as he sat inside his cheap car and drove away.

 

The police station was surrounded with journalists and broadcasting vans. He had to wait fifteen minutes just to find a good parking spot. As he walked through the crowds of reporters, he caught the gist of conversations and headlines.

 

_"... authorities have yet to expose anything new regarding the potential witness, but it's a young woman whose identity is unknown..."_

_"... forensics will reveal their report for public tomorrow, but there is no doubt that it is a cold blooded murder..."_

_"... the large amount of cash on the crime scene suggests that it wasn't a robbery but a personal vendetta..."_

 

Kyungsoo sighed and walked inside the building. Nobody stopped him. He was just a nondescript man in civilian clothes. Inside, the station was bubble of noise, dragging chairs, ringing phones, curses, and spilling coffees. He swallowed up the longing that filled him as he walked by the work stations of the detectives on this case. He envied their messy hair, their disheveled clothes and dark circles. He missed the thrill and agnoy that came with trying to solve a tough one.

 

Jongdae screamed a greeting as soon as Kyungsoo walked into his office. "Finally! We need to get her out now, D.O. _Now!"_

 

Kyungsoo smiled at his boss. A slim man who was as noisy as he was brave. If it wasn't for Jongdae and his trustworthy nature, Kyungsoo would have gone mad long ago. _Just eight months._

 

"May I have the file?" Kyungsoo said, extending his hand.

 

Jongdae grabbed the hand and dropped a thankful kiss on it. "It's already on your desk. You have twenty minutes."

 

Kyungsoo had worked with less. But even he could sense that this case was going to be a tough one. Heck, he nearly felt his detective senses kicking in, already cataloging the known associates of CEO Jung as prime suspects.

 

As promised, there was a file on his table. He read it through. The witness was Kim Jungin, age 24. She'd been a desk employee at a property office until twenty four hours ago. She lived alone with two dogs, and her rent was due since four months. There wasn't any information about her boyfriends or friends. She had a father but they barely remained in contact. The file was bleak, her social security number had expired years ago. Kyungsoo smiled slightly. She was nobody. Making her disappear would take just a few clicks of the mouse and taps on the keyboard.

 

Ten minutes later, he had a bunch of new documents in hand. He walked out of the small office towards the investigation room. He nodded to the man standing guard outside and walked in. 

 

At least they had turned on all the lights. He could see the witness sitting on the chair, her head down and long blond hair spilling out of her ponytail, hiding her face.

 

"Kim Jungin-ssi?" Kyungsoo asked quietly.

 

The woman looked up. He was taken aback. She was truly a girl, young and slightly underfed. She looked like a ghost, her mouth pinched, eyes haunted. If not for the tragedy that befell her, she'd be beautiful in Kyungsoo's eyes. Her hair were clumped as if she hadn't showered for a few days. Her clothes were meticulous, but old and had gone through many washes. 

 

He had to get her out of this stifling room soon.

 

Sitting in front of her, he began speaking. "My name is Agent D.O. I won't tell you my real name. I'm responsible for keeping you safe until your hearing."

 

"Hearing?" she spoke with a dry throat.

 

Kyungsoo blinked and then rang a button under the table. The guard outside opened the door and stepped in. "Bring her a glass of water."

 

Once Jungin had drank a few mouthfuls, Kyungsoo continued, "You will be transferred to a safe location until we receive an official date for the trial. You will be given a new identity, and your appearance will be altered according to your consent." He slid a document and a pen towards her. "You may choose your own name."

 

She looked at the document. "Jungin. I want to be Jungin."

 

Kyungsoo sighed. This was always a difficult part. "Then you can pick a different surname."

 

After a moment, Jungin took the pen and wrote down her name. Kyungsoo blinked. She'd written, _Do Jungin._ Well, this will only be required until the trial, so he allowed it. Taking the document back, Kyungsoo said his usual piece, "From here, you will remain with me. I'm your agent, and since you've picked my name, I'll be acting as your older brother from here out. We'll move to a new living space."

 

Jungin shook her head. "Is this a witness protection program?"

 

"Indeed. We are leaving at once."

 

"That's it?" 

 

Kyungsoo, who'd stood up, was slightly impressed by her firm voice. She was at the end of her wits, that much was apparent. 

 

"I've been isolated in here since... I don't even remember how long. I've seen three different detectives and two lawyers. I've been searched and groped by medics. And now, they want to make me disappear with a man I don't even know the true name of!" She was breathing hard as she finished, her eyes filling up with frustrating tears.

 

"Miss Jungin, I am a specialist in this field. I don't have any ill intention towards you. I'm just doing my job."

 

"But you're a man! I can't... Tell them to get me a female agent or just keep me in a cell. I don't..."

 

"I said, I have no intention to harm you. As for my identity as a man, that shouldn't be a problem. I happen to be openly gay. Does that make you feel safe?"

 

Jungin's mouth popped open. She looked at him up and down. "You don't look gay."

 

Kyungsoo repressed his sarcasm. And failed. "Maybe I should show you my pink underwear?"

 

Jungin had enough sense to look ashamed. "I apologize. I wasn't trying to stereotype-"

 

 _"Anyways,"_ Kyungsoo consulted his watch. His twenty minutes time frame was taking its last breaths. "Time's up. We need to leave now."

.

.

 

Baekhyun walked into the top floor office. As always, he felt a chill go down his spine at the high level air conditioning. He walked up to the desk and took a seat. The man behind the desk was talking to someone on the landline.

 

"It's horrible indeed. I am willing to help you out." His handsome voice represented nothing but sincerity, but Baekhyun, who could see his expression, knew that he was incensed. "Anything, anytime."

 

The man put the phone down. He closed his eyes, threw his head back and inhaled. Baekhyun knew him and his gestures well enough, he'd been working for this man for seven years now, to know that he only did that when he was trying to contain himself. 

 

Finally relaxed, the man looked at Baekhyun and started speaking. "Since you don't like watching news, I want to ask you for your services in this matter. The CEO of the Park and Kim law firm is dead. _I_ killed him."

 

Baekhyun knew well enough not to question why. This wasn't the first time he was hearing of Chanyeol killing someone for one reason or another. He focused on getting the instructions down. "And what would you have me do, Park-ssi?"

 

"I was careful. I killed him far from home and in a gutter street to make it look like an assault. I even had a silencer on my gun."

 

Baekhyun waited patiently. He could almost guess where this was going.

 

"I was on the phone with the DA just now. Since the law firm is under my partnership, they needed to know if I had any information about who could possibly do something like this. The DA is in my pockets, so I don't actually have to worry. But since I have no idea how much that bitch saw, I needed you to do me a favor."

 

"You could have asked anyone in your guards to do it," Baekhyun said, standing up. "You know well enough I don't do small tasks like this."

 

"She's under the witnesses protection services now," Park Chanyeol spat through the venom in his mouth. He looked red in the face, almost like he was personally insulted by the audacity of the authorities to do such a thing. "There were more than ten journalists there, and cameras but nobody saw her leave. She's just gone."

 

Baekhyun raised an eyebrow. So _that's_ why he was here. "It means she's under the protection of a specialist."

 

"I can get the information on her. On that agent as well, I have enough connections. You have to get it done before the trial."

 

 _Connections._ But, of course. Underneath the suave and professional mask lurked the multifaceted monster with his talons in every place one could imagine: private business sectors, oil imports, cartels, government and even the underground.

 

Baekhyun was already typing on his phone, searching for the apartments, rooms or even houses that have gone to new tenants in the last twelve hours. "I'll check out the information when you send it. Can you delay the hearing for a week?"

 

Chanyeol nodded, but he now had a smirk on his face. "Why a week? You usually don't wait."

 

"It's a famous case and every eye is upon the elusive killer. If I got rid of the witness now, the police would only get motivated to extend the investigation and then we'll both be in trouble. As for the delay, I think I can track her down within a week. I might even come up with the idea to make it look like a suicide or something."

 

Chanyeol's smirk turned smug, almost as if he prided himself for discovering Baekhyun. "And that's why, I can't let my guards handle it. Their pea brains can only handle manual work. Your brain is what makes you irreplaceable."

 

"Just get the money in my account," Baekhyun said, walking out of the office. He already had a list of around fifteen places that have been occupied within the last twenty four hours, and seven of them seemed ideal to hide away a murder witness.

.

.

 

Chanyeol huffed out a laugh. "Money. If I didn't have it, I'd never be able to afford you B."

 

He didn't know his name. His father had introduced Chanyeol to all of his known associates, as well as his hired hands. The first time he met B, he had laughed at his old man. "And why would I need a hitman?"

 

"He's more than a hitman," his father had scolded him gruffly. "He can make your troubles disappear. Sure, he asks for a hefty amount in return, but you'll realize his worth once you mess up."

 

And exactly a month later, Chanyeol realized B's worth. He had gotten into a drunken scuffle in a club and the videos of the incident had gone viral. He brought shame to the honorable name of Park Associates, and in desperation, he'd tried to offer the website owner money for removing the video. No matter how much he offered, the owner didn't budge. With no other choice, he'd resorted to seeking help from B.

 

It took him two hours, and B had somehow persuaded the website owner to take the video down from each channel. Chanyeol had wondered about how he managed that, but in the end, he didn't care. His trouble was gone. At a heavy price, but B had been meticulous. Nobody suspected anything. The owner never dared to cross him again. Furthermore, his initiative had won Chanyeol many points with his father's underground associates, and introduced him to the darker side of the city.

 

He could handle some of the things on his own. But he lacked B's finesse, as was apparent with the current situation. Then again, he didn't have time to think. He only had enough time to act once he realized what Jung had done. And his hurry had caused him another 10 million won with B. It was worth it though. He had to worry for a week before all of this will go away.

 

He was still busy in thoughts when his contact at the DA's office sent him a mail. It was the known info on the agent who'd been given the responsibility of looking after the witness. And attached to the file were the pass codes to access the CCTV database. Chanyeol was going to have to pay this guy more from now on, because he'd hit the jackpot. 

 

He sent the email to B without even reading it. Hiring B meant that he can relax and play however he liked. But he was going to do the only thing he was capable of for now. He was going to get the media involved in CEO Jung's family drama and keep them distracted.

 

He laughed. "That'll keep them busy for a week. Maybe more."

.

.

 

Baekhyun was in the car as he reviewed the email. As expected, the agent was stripped of his name for the purpose of anonymity, and there wasn't even a picture for identification. Only a thumb imprint, which Baekhyun knew without checking that it didn't exist, and the basic information. Code name: D.O, had a falsified date of birth and address, the location didn't exist in the navigator of Baekhyun's car. Basically, he had nothing to go on. Chanyeol's contact must not have any link with the inside bunch.

 

But the pass codes were the only way to solve this situation. If Baekhyun could get through the firewalls, he might even be able to drag out the agent's true identity. The codes to the city's entire CCTV database were no joke, they were the eyes that never blinked.

 

"Looks like it will take me less than a week," he mused aloud. "Maybe I should increase my hire rent by thirty percent for this."

 

He slammed the foot on the accelerator and decided to check out the seven places first. If he saw anyone who looked suspicious and new, well... good thing Seoul wasn't very big.

 


	2. The Neighborhood in the Sky

 

Jungin liked to sit in the window seat and look at the world spread below her. When she'd left with agent D.O, she had expected to disappear in a miserable place where she'd rarely see the sun. Instead, the agent had led her to this little piece of paradise. 

 

They were on the nineteenth floor of a fairly new building called Heaven Heights. Since its construction, only a few tenants had bought a few apartments on the lower floors. D.O must have had some serious support from the background for him to make use of this place as her hideaway. She liked it. It had been a dream of hers, once upon a time, to be able to buy an apartment from where she could see the whole city. It was ironic that she was sort of getting her wish now, after everything had become so deeply wrong.

 

She could see the agent in the reflection of the glass. As usual, he was working on his computers. One laptop was on his lap, where he was writing his daily report. The other laptop sat in front of him on the table, showing ten small windows on screen. In each little box, there was some kind of activity. The street below, the hallway outside, the lobby and dining area downstairs, even the parking lot in the underground - cameras watched everything. After the interval of every ten minutes, D.O would look at every little box, noticing things Jungin didn't know of, consulting for a while, then he'd go back to his work.

 

She wouldn't admit it aloud, but the agent had been kind of a comfort. She hadn't dated for a while which meant that her experience with men had dulled already. Still, she couldn't remember the last time a man had fed her food and provided her comfort of a home. She didn't remember the last time she'd been in close quarters of men, for that matter. 

 

 _If he wasn't gay,_ she found herself thinking more than once, _he would be a perfect boyfriend._ Whoever dated agent D.O would be lucky indeed.

 

It's been three days since they came here. The first day, she'd barely seen him. D.O had spent the whole day going around the building and installing his coin-sized cameras. After that, he'd put in a lot of complicated alarms on the windows and the front door, alerting him if anyone tried to intrude upon them. The second day had been pretty much the same, but Jungin had explored the whole apartment to her content and found this amazing place to sit and waste the day away in. D.O had spent the time constantly answering his phone, gathering data about goodness knows what. 

 

Today he seemed to be relaxed. Jungin appreciated that he wasn't someone who liked to fill the comfortable silence with useless chatter. They were, strangely, alike.

 

D.O looked up at her, and she realized that she'd been staring at him for a while now. 

 

"Did you need anything?" he asked, putting away the computer and stretching himself to ease his sore muscles. "Are you hungry?"

 

Jungin didn't need food yet, but there was something on her mind. "This place is beautiful enough but- how long am I supposed to stay here?"

 

D.O seemed to be thinking it over. "I can't say anything before we find out something regarding your trial. There's a possibility that it would happen soon, but if it's delayed, then you might have to stay here longer than a week."

 

"Has it ever happened before that you had to protect witnesses for more time than you imagined?"

 

He smiled slightly. "My last case took three months. And once I had to take care of a family for over a year."

 

Jungin closed her eyes and tried to take it in. A week she could handle. Two weeks was also bearable. But more than that? She wasn't used to being cooped up; she liked the open skies and the polluted air and the noises of the market. Up here, where she could see everything, she also realized that it was quiet. "Am I supposed to stay inside the whole time then?"

 

"That also has to wait," he stood up, searching for keys and wallet. "If your case turns out to be less dangerous then it should be okay if you go outside with your fake identity. For now, I'm not going to let you go outside."

 

"But you're going wherever you want?" she realized, because D.O had his wallet now and he was tying the laces of his shoes.

 

"There aren't any more groceries left and I need to be the one to take care of such errands. Do you have a request?"

 

Jungin blinked. She hadn't expected to be asked what she wanted. "Choco milk. Bring some choco milk."

 

D.O left. She heard the click of the lock being turned from outside. Sighing, she went back to watching the city.

.

.

 

Baekhyun couldn't help but exploit the vulnerability of the police by hacking into their CCTV database. And oh, what treasures he had found. There still wasn't anything significant regarding the agent charged with the security of the witness, but he had a found a picture of him. Sort of. Same went for the witness herself. Her records had been buried, but he was able to find her name. Kim Jungin, used to work in a property advertising company but was fired on the day of the incident.

 

The picture he had found was from the street camera right outside the back entrance of the police station. A man and a woman had came out of the building, while the front was being assaulted by the reporters, and got into a car that looked fairly normal. Baekhyun had to zoom in and modify the pixels in order to get a decent screen cap. Jungin could be seen clearly - what with her mass of blonde hair, but the agent had his head down, half of his face covered with a cap. The half he could see was a chin, a sharp jawbone and a set mouth. 

 

"He is good," Baekhyun mumbled. Automatically avoiding the cameras and wearing a cap. It was going to be hard to recognize Code Name: D.O, but he'll try anyway.

 

The next piece of evidence he'd found was even more spectacular than the last. Apparently the CCTV had followed Jungin from her office to the crime scene perfectly. At that time of the night, most of the traffic had been concentrated to the main city. She was seen walking out of the office she used to work in, to a restaurant she had gone inside for a while, to the dark streets after which there were no more cameras. Her general direction though, made it clear that she was heading to the scene of crime. It was obvious she hadn't done it on purpose. But that wasn't Baekhyun's business. He was getting paid to kill her. Her innocence didn't matter to him.

 

For starters, he sent the video file to Mr. Park, with a message: _"Watch carefully. Maybe you passed by her but didn't notice?"_

 

There was no reply, Baekhyun didn't wait for it. Instead, he focused on staking out the last two places on his list. Coincidently, one of these was the place where a couple had moved in, one day after the incident. It was too much to be a coincidence, so he decided to go there first. But he needed to be prepared in case he actually got what he wanted.

.

.

 

Chanyeol came to his office angry. He was just in a meeting with his father, and apparently he'd known that CEO's death may have something to do with his son. As with B, Chanyeol hadn't denied, but it made his old man even more angry.

 

"Why would you go after him yourself?" Mr. Park the elder said, sipping his wine as Chanyeol knelt before him. "You have a tool in your hand, you should utilize it, instead of sending it out after all's done."

 

"I'm afraid I didn't have time to wait around for B and his antics," Chanyeol said through clenched teeth; his thighs were starting to hurt. "If I'd done that, Jung would have escaped with the flash disc."

 

That put a frown on his father's face. "Nevertheless, this is going to cause a disaster in the media. If our name got dragged in mud again because of you, be prepared for a life in the sewers, my dear boy."

 

Chanyeol slammed the office door and ripped off his tie. Throwing his briefcase aside, he stomped towards the table and turned on his notebook computer. He allowed a single glance to the email notifications, but continued to do what he should have done a while ago. 

 

He opened up his password protected folders and found the video he'd been looking for. He then uploaded the video on the low rank newsmedia channel's website, with the caption - _Dead CEO Pimps Out His Wife For Some Cash._ He put in the appropriate tags, knowing full well exactly where they would promote the video, and then leaned back, watching as the storm began. 

 

Before his eyes, there was a view counter. A few blinks later, it showed that one person had already seen the video, and testified to its originality. Then the view counter said 2, then 3, and Chanyeol closed the website window with a satisfied chuckle.

 

Now that he'd done his work, he finally opened the emails sent by B. _More videos,_ he mused. As he played the first clip, he was unimpressed. Sure, an agent was taking the witness away, big deal. "Not to mention, shitty quality," he muttered, clicking the next one. "I could see dead moths on the lense."

 

The next one was a loop of various videos clipped together, a testament that B had done a lot of searching for this. It was a better quality than before, which is why he was able to see the girl as she got out of an office and started wandering around. She stopped outside various places, reading small notices outside. Chanyeol suddenly realized that she was looking for a job. Her form was slim, in fact, she was too thin even on the screen. Her hair were blonde and piled high on her head in a ponytail that had seen better hours before this. He couldn't see her face yet, only her profile and amazingly well structured jaw. He felt miserable watching her, because her downcast shoulders, forceful walk and body language - it all screamed for help. She was miserable and hopeless, and probably a bit cold in her office-secretary attire.

 

There was something catching about her, that made him want to sit through the entire thirty-nine minutes of the video and just watch. And then there was a moment when she stopped and stared at something far ahead. The street lights hit her face and he could see what she looked like.

 

He couldn't breathe for a moment, because she truly was breathtaking.

 

His curiosity was peaking, and when she disappeared into the darker streets, Chanyeol had no doubt in his mind that she'd been there that night. She'd seen everything.

 

He read B's message: _Watch carefully. Maybe you passed by her but didn't notice?_

 

He hadn't noticed her that night. He would have remembered her.

 

He called his own secretary inside. "Cancel my schedule for the rest of the day, and if someone asks for me, tell them I'm not in the country."

 

He walked out of the office, almost forgetting his briefcase, and found himself next to his car. The chauffeur stared at him, holding the door open. Chanyeol cursed. He'd walked down here, took the elevator in between, and found his car in the damn parking lot, but he had no memory of his actions. Because he was still thinking about her, the witness. She'd been on his mind this entire time.

 

"I need to do something," he said aloud. "Take me to the Eve Residence."

 

In fact, she remained on his mind for a long, long time still.

.

.

 

Kyungsoo decided to make something nice for Jungin. He had been in business of protecting people for a while now, but this was the first time he found himself feeling concerned. Jungin wasn't a normal girl. Apart from the trauma she'd suffered as a witness, there was something else wrong with her. He just couldn't figure it out. What he could do, though, was to help her get through this ordeal. First order of business was to fix her unbelievably slim body. Slender girls were one thing, but Jungin looked like someone had stacked bones together then wrapped skin around. Her ample hair also didn't help matters: it looked like a miracle that she'd managed to keep that much weight on her head.

 

Which is why, Kyungsoo had called in his friend and stylist, Minseok. Minseok had taken one look at Jungin's hair and burst into praises, telling her that it was the best hair he'd ever seen. So when Jungin said she wanted to cut it, Minseok had been in literal tears. Eventually, they compromised and now Jungin's hair was falling just past her shoulders, flecked with black and purple streaks. It had been a revolutionary change, and she looked smaller than before, thinner too.

 

As for the food, Kyungsoo had cooked the best he could. He didn't know her taste, but he hoped that by the time she could get out in the world again, she'd at least have some strength in her body. He wondered how bad her financial situation had been, and a cursory background check revealed that her company had done nothing but exploit her, overwork her, and repaid her with miserably steep wages.

 

Kyungsoo didn't usually get involved with the witnesses. He'd never made any of his charges comfortable, especially if they were men. Once, he'd tried to cook for a widow and her child, but he had soon learned that her cooking technique was far better. Usually, he wasn't even near the witnesses, just observing them from a far, or through the CCTV, or even doing weekly checks. But for the first time, he had requested a posh apartment with facilities, and was cooking for his charge.

 

Something about Jungin ticked him, he just didn't know what. Then again, maybe all girls were like this. He didn't exactly have much experience.

 

He was preparing the meal and the whole apartment - that previously smelt of new paint and furniture - was now filled with the aroma of chicken soup and sour pork. Jungin drifted over to the kitchen counter and he smiled at the naked hunger in her eyes. It proved a point - she wasn't starving because she wanted to be. 

 

"How long until it's done?" she asked shyly.

 

"Ten minutes. Could you set the table?"

 

Jungin drifted off again, her bare feet barely making a sound on the wooden floor, and started setting a table for two. 

 

His phone rang first. It was Jongdae. "Bad news, the trial has been delayed by another week."

 

Kyungsoo had imagined something like that would happen. It looked like a normal case of assault at a first glance, but his detective instincts had known that the mess was only just beginning. This set back, it confirmed his suspicions. "Do we know why?"

 

"The public has stopped being sympathetic towards CEO Jung. Haven't you seen the news yet?"

 

"I haven't. Just tell me already."

 

Jongdae was silent, as if he was looking for a safe place to reveal information. "Apparently someone posted a video of Jung's wife with another man's dick down her throat. To make things worse, there's Jung's voice in the background egging her on."

 

Kyungsoo almost laughed. "That _someone_ is your killer. If not him, then it's someone hired by the killer."

 

"How did you figure that one out?" Jongdae, always the voice of skepticism, whined.

 

"It's amazing how little your department is getting done these days. Look, the killer is spooked that Jung's case is getting that much attention from the media. He needs to shift focus, defame the CEO so that the same public that is screaming for justice will start to seek justice for his victimized wife and family, forgetting about him completely because he's trash anyway." Kyungsoo paused long enough to pour out the pork carefully in the dish. "Moreover, he also bought time until the trial can begin. He could use this time to escape or devise a strategy or even implant a fake killer in his place."

 

"That won't happen," Jungin interjected. "I remember him. His _voice."_

 

Kyungsoo smiled at her. "He doesn't know exactly how much our witness saw, so this is him, trying to maintain the situation or turn it into his own favor."

 

Jongdae was silent. "Fuck, I want you here." He sounded impressed.

 

"Shouldn't've demoted me for so long, then."

 

"I had to follow the rules, dammit. Uh, whatever. Just make sure you keep her safe."

 

"When have I ever not?" And so saying, he disconnected the call. "Maybe I should cut some cucumbers with it?"

 

He went to work again, glancing at the laptop, and paused. He thought he saw movement in the parking lot. Sure enough, a moving truck came to the light. He ignored it and went back to his work. In last three days, they weren't the only ones moving here. This new apartment building had attracted a lot of potential buyers in the last few days, but apparently someone had decided to move in after all. It wasn't his concern though.

 

He finished cutting the cucumbers and glanced at the screen again. Movers were helping a man with a lot of cardboard boxes the size of a big microwave oven. Kyungsoo blinked. There must be at least eighty such boxes. 

   

"Food is getting cold," Jungin chided.

 

It wasn't his headache. He ignored the screen and sat down to eat. It was worth it to look at the expression on Jungin's face as she took her first bite. She looked amazed, as if she never knew food could taste like this, and started eating like a horse. Kyungsoo didn't smile this time, though, he had nearly burst into laughter the first night they had dinner together.

 

They ate in amicable silence, Kyungsoo enjoying the strange feeling of watching someone else eat and enjoy his food. So when there was a sudden noise in the air around them, they weren't prepared. It was like lightening flashing in pitch darkness, heralding a storm when there weren't even clouds.

 

It took Kyungsoo a moment to realize that it was a _doorbell,_ and another to find his feet and run back to the kitchen counter to grab his computer. And there, on the screen was a person standing right outside their door.

 

"Who is it?" Jungin whispered, her eyes wide and scared.

 

Kyungsoo couldn't even comprehend his own lack of vigilance, much less make sense of an actual person standing right outside their door.

 

He had requested this apartment because he knew he wouldn't have to be bothered by neighbors. He had placed all those cameras precisely because he didn't want to be surprised by anyone coming up to the door. But the person outside had easily crossed all of Kyungsoo's carefully laid camera works and rang their doorbell like it was a walk in the park.

 

Jungin came up behind him and was also watching the screen now. "Looks like he's moving in or something."

 

Kyungsoo blinked, getting his bearings. He'd been so shocked that he'd completely overlooked the two huge cardboard boxes teetering on the man's arms. He remembered the moving truck, and his own carelessness, and decided what to do. 

 

"Jungin-ssi, please go inside your room and lock the door."

 

"But he doesn't look like-"

 

"It's better if no one knows you live with me."

 

She nodded, grabbed another juicy piece of pork and walked off. Once she was gone, Kyungsoo opened the kitchen drawer and pulled out a gun. He checked the cartridge, counted five bullets inside, and then tucked the gun in the waistline of his jeans at the back. Carefully constructing a plan, and making sure his face looked uninviting, he opened the door.

.

.

 

Baekhyun was going to topple over if this door didn't open in a few more minutes. He was wondering if this was the best way to crack this joint up, but he knew first impressions mattered. 

 

Earlier today, he'd seen the building and asked around. It was too expensive to even count really, but when the chatty granny in the parking lot had said, "Oh, are you moving? Is your wife here too?"

 

Baekhyun had said, "I don't know if this place is for us really."

 

And she'd giggled and said, "Now, now, I'll tell you this place is really good and secure. Why a new couple moved in just a day ago!" 

 

Baekhyun leaned in closer and asked, "What did they look like?" 

 

The granny waved a hand. "Young. Oh, the girl was pretty, her hair were like magic. I used to have hair like that!" 

 

Baekhyun laughed along, and went back to finalize the rent over the phone. During that, another piece of information had fallen in his hand. Turned out, the owner was chatty too. "I suggest that you buy the top floor. It's vast and has a perfect view-"

 

"I can't afford that," Baekhyun said crossly. "Just give me the one with good neighbors. If it's another couple, my girlfriend would be happy."

 

"A couple? Oh, there is one at the nineteenth floor! They are new as well, what a coincidence."

 

"Indeed," Baekhyun said with a smile.

 

A new couple that lived in the uninhabited upper floor, with a wife who had magic hair? That had to be them. After he finalized the contract, Baekhyun drove to the building that was not quite large, but right across the apartment building. He needed a vantage point for observation and data gathering, and while he'd been there looking around the neighborhood with his electronic binoculars, he spotted Jungin in the window of the nineteenth floor. "Got you."

 

Now he was here with a lot of luggage. He'd planned ahead and decided to make a character of himself. He'd be just a stupid, loud neighbor. And once they let their guard down...

 

The door opened, and Baekhyun had to peek around the boxes he was carrying. He opened his mouth to speak, and his voice stuck.

 

He knew, in the recesses of his mind, that he was finally looking at Code Name: D.O, but he failed to match the complete picture with his expectations. The agent was not what he'd expected. Brown hair, beautiful and big eyes, round wire frame spectacles and a hipster fashion sense. Still, there was a controlled sense of danger and power lurking beneath the visibly relaxed exterior. He looked like a fluffy rabbit with the heart of a dragon. A diamond coated with ash. In short, he was _exactly_ Baekhyun's type.

 

He had not expected this complication.

 

"How may I help you?" said the agent, sounding bored and repellent. Baekhyun neatly inhaled at his voice.

 

"Uhh... hi," Baekhyun said, blinking as he suddenly remembered why he was here. "I'm your new neighbor and I was wondering if you could help me move?"

 

The agent did not look amused. In fact, he seemed to be fighting the urge to slam the door in Baekhyun's face. Good thing the cardboard boxes really were heavy and not the part of Baekhyun's act, because it helped in making a pained face. "If that's not possible, could you please take out my key from the left pocket of my jacket and open my door for me?" Baekhyun nodded at his arms and boxes, "I can't seem to bend and put these down. Bit off more than I can chew." And to sound genuine, he also threw in a nervous chuckle.

 

The agent looked at him, up then down. "You want me to take a key from your pocket and open your door for you?"

 

Baekhyun nodded, making sure his eyes sparkled. 

 

The agent stepped outside the door, and then reached for Baekhyun. Years of training and defensive strategies flared but Baekhyun had to be very careful not to become tense. _He's just reaching for my pocket. It's going as planned._

 

But instead, Code Name: D.O grabbed the upper most box from the pile and placed it on the floor. He also did the same with the second box. "Your hands are free now. Go and open the damn door yourself."

 

Baekhyun's jaw dropped. Of all the things he'd expected... And then the door slammed in his face.

 

He had to work really hard to try and stay in character. He was 0% sure the agent had rigged up the place with cameras. So smiling his stupid smile, he opened his own damn door, and then helped himself move in. He regretted taking all eighty boxes with himself, since it seemed like he'd have to do it alone or recruit the guards downstairs. The one thing he didn't regret was this decision to pretend to be a friendly neighbor. 

 

 _This is going to be fun,_ he thought, smiling to himself.

 


	3. Paranoia vs Patience

 

Kyungsoo was getting paranoid. It was his nature and the nature of his job, but the more he stayed up in the apartment, the more he grew conscious of this paranoia. It could be because the large windows suddenly looked too exposing, or maybe because Jungin had started to spend time in her room more than in the living area. Or maybe it was because there was far too much activity outside in the hallway. He was certain he had dissuaded the new neighbor from making any moves towards them, but that didn't mean the neighbor was also exempt from making moves on other residents of the building.

 

He didn't know his name. But he knew that the new neighbor was a force to be reckoned with. 

 

From what he'd seen (not that he'd been stalking him or anything), the neighbor had made friends with almost everyone in the building - almost because Kyungsoo and Jungin seemed to be the only exceptions. Every morning, the neighbor woke up and collected his newspaper from outside the door. Then, after breakfast Kyungsoo assumed, he went down to the building gym and pool and spent some quality time with the kids and ajummas, and then he went jogging with some of the men. He stopped to chat with every guard, sweeper, or passerby. He came home from his jog after four hours, holding what looked like groceries and a few new books. Then he disappeared in his apartment for nine to ten hours. Some nights he wouldn't even appear again. But most nights, just around 9 o' clock, he would go down to the building bar and catch a few drinks with his many friends.

 

It wasn't that Kyungsoo thought that he'd successfully threatened the neighbor into avoiding them, it was just that the neighbor had become hesitant.

 

Right after the first night's incident, the neighbor had appeared outside their door again the next afternoon. He had brought them brownies, and again, he stood outside the door and tried to make up his mind if to ring the bell. 

 

"Go," Jungin had said. "It's brownies!"

 

Kyungsoo sighed. "I'll make you brownies later. They could be poisoned!"

 

Jungin rolled her eyes in disbelief. The neighbor left, stuffing his own brownies into his mouth and looking a lot like a kicked puppy. Kyungsoo sighed again, because he had to make brownies.

 

Two nights after that, the neighbor returned. It was so interesting even Jungin hadn't been able to take her eyes off the screen. 

 

"Is it just me or he looks distressed?" Jungin commented, tying her purple hair into a messy bun. 

 

Kyungsoo was thinking the same thing.

 

The neighbor's body language screamed distress. He kept reaching for the doorbell, and then changing his mind, and then looked to the left, back to his own apartment door. Finally, after a few moments, and a lot of lip biting, he gave up entirely and ran for the elevator.

 

Curious, Kyungsoo had gone to the door and cracked it open to investigate. Only to gasp because the door to the neighbor's apartment was fully ajar, and there was smoke spilling out. It looked like the neighbor had set fire to something accidentally and didn't know how to extinguish it.

 

Kyungsoo wondered why the fire alarm wasn't working, and if he should go ahead and help, when the elevator started coming back up. He closed the door and watched the laptop screen. The neighbor had brought help and a few of the men were now trying to contain the fire, using the fire extinguishers from the ground floor.

 

During this time, he got the news from Jongdae that the trial has been delayed again. He was expecting Jungin to start getting uncomfortable, but at the news, Jungin had simply sighed and said, "They're waiting if I can die of boredom."

 

Now that they were used to living together, and that Jungin had a healthy glow to her skin, Kyungsoo was realizing that she was quite a personality. She was talkative about marketing and fashion trends, and she had a good tongue for sarcasm, though he rarely saw her being cruel.

 

That's why Kyungsoo decided to go out. He felt, for the first time in his career, guilty of going when Jungin was all trapped in. But he figured this trip would be worth her while, he was after all, going because of her.

 

He went out late at night, after checking that Jungin was deeply asleep. He made sure that the alarm system was armed, and the windows were all locked. After checking the coast on the camera feed, he exited the apartment and locked the door. He was wearing shorts that he preferred for sleep and a tank top, with a hoodie. He figured it was late out so he wouldn't need the cap or mask.

 

The entire building was sleeping. The hallway lights were turned off, only the automatic lights and the elevator lights were functional. If it weren't for his glasses, he might have tripped in the darkness. He reached the lobby and saluted the night guard who was on his rounds. The lobby was a beautiful place, a hall with sitting area, to a dining section on the left for people who liked to eat in public places. There were doors that led to the basement level spa and pools. There was also a rec room with various sports equipment, and a gym for those who were conscious of their bodies.

 

As he passed the gym door, he stopped short. The lights were on, and somebody was using the machines. The _clack, clack, clack_ sounding louder in the night. Curious, Kyungsoo went to investigate. He cracked the door open a bit, and almost gasped. 

 

He considered himself a good observer, but even his observations of the last few days hadn't prepared him for what he saw. He knew the new neighbor's routine perfectly. But now, there was something else that he hadn't even thought was a part of the neighbor's routine.

 

The neighbor was now doing bench press. He was wearing gym shorts. And nothing else. Underneath the cute and friendly exterior, Kyungsoo hadn't expected the neighbor to be so... _ripped._ He was built well, with soft looking six packs, and there was even a slight happy trial leading into his shorts. Kyungsoo's openly gay heart lurched violently.

 

And then he realized he was staring at the neighbor who he'd been avidly avoiding. He stepped back, and tried to close the door. But at that moment, the neighbor stopped and saw him. They both froze. Neither knew what to do. Kyungsoo was certain that the neighbor was thinking about his rude behavior from that day still.

 

Then the neighbor gave him an awkward wave. "Um, was I too loud?"

 

Kyungsoo blinked and shook his head. He hadn't expected a conversation.

 

The neighbor chuckled nervously. Grabbing a towel he started wiping his torso. Kyungsoo saw two small wounds in his stomach, and a fresh one on his arm that he must have gotten from that fire incident.

 

But by then the neighbor was pulling on his t-shirt, whilez explaining awkwardly, "It's too public in day time, and I was rusting my joints at work. So I thought I'd... Well, sorry for the disturbance, I guess."

 

"This gym is sound proof," Kyungsoo dead panned. Then cursed his mouth. He hadn't wanted to reply, but his heart was still recovering from the somersault it had experienced.

 

The neighbor's lips made an O shape. Then he laughed awkwardly again. _"Riiight._ Well, I'm done for tonight anyway."

 

"Bye, then," Kyungsoo said and tried to escape. He was tempted to go back upstairs, but since the neighbor was going there too, he decided not to.

 

He was in his car, when he was clear enough to realize that the wounds on the neighbor's body had looked a lot like bullet wounds. His paranoia returned, but he shook it away. He had worked with perfection as always. The chances of anyone finding him and Jungin were less than one percent. So he focused on his on his plans for the night.

.

.

 

Patience is always rewarded. 

 

But Baekhyun was sure he would run out of patience a lot sooner than Mr. Park's payment would. He had expected some sort of result, but all he'd managed to do in these three days was get himself a large amount of fan following.

 

Strangely enough, he liked the building. It was a lot better than the small space he'd been living in before. There was a pool, a gym, and sprawling gardens in the part of Seoul where he could hardly hope for oxygen. And his new acquaintances, the fans, were also really agreeable. If he wasn't on a job, he might've fully appreciated it. As it was, he had only gotten used to the fast-building routine.

 

He woke up early, as he always had since his childhood, went for a jog, then had breakfast with Mrs. Third floor and her band of friends in the dining halls. Afterwards, he spent the considerable amount of time on the rooftop of the opposite building trying to see inside the lonely apartment on the nineteenth floor. He sometimes caught glimpses of Jungin, but they were so brief he wasn't sure if he should just snipe her. He also caught Code Name: D.O once or twice, on the phone or walking around with a tablet or a laptop. 

 

His theory about the cameras was proven right when he tried to act all neighborly and brought them brownies. He stared at the mahogany door, and found a small camera sitting in the circle of 9 of apartment # 19-1. He tried to act shy and harmless. But after many minutes it was obvious nobody was buying his act. So he left and enjoyed the brownies by himself - they were not soft.

 

Later he tried to depend on the _drastic times called for drastic measures_ way of things and willingly set fire to his sleak kitchen oven. But the agent, heart of ice, Code Name: D.O, didn't respond to the stress signal. He had to get others before it really became a disaster, and gotten his arm burned trying to help the rescue process.

 

He was out of options. Making it look like an accident wasn't going to cut it anymore. Mr. Park had delayed the trial again, and he was not going to ask for more time. That was the height of unprofessionalism. He was getting himself in the mindset these days, planning again and again. He had to breach into the apartment, overwhelm the agent, kill Jungin, and escape. Fast. The reason why he'd moved into the apartment next door was precisely because he had covered all of his escape routes already.

 

On day four, he got a call from Mr. Park.

 

"Is she dead yet?"

 

Baekhyun took a moment to answer. It wasn't that Mr. Park's voice was unemotional or lacking anything, but he could detect a fair amount of distress in it. Like he couldn't _wait_ until Kim Jungin was dead and gone. It was rather hostile, even for Mr. Park.

 

"Not yet," Baekhyun replied. "The agent has her locked up good, and I'll have to think of a new plan. It might be noisy."

 

"Noisy or whatever," Park Chanyeol groaned. "Just kill her, would you?"

 

The phone went dead. Baekhyun stared at it, frowning. Mr. Park was definitely more agitated than normal. Normally, Park Chanyeol handed the job over to Baekhyun and forgot about it. Normally, it was Baekhyun calling him to a) remained him of what the job actually was and b) confirm that he had taken care of it already. But this job was weighing heavily on Park, and it could only mean that the Senior Park had somehow also gotten involved.

 

Baekhyun stared at the calendar. He had three days until the deadline. And he won't miss it.

 

His patience was rewarded that night, quite suddenly and unexpectedly. He was in the gym at nearly midnight because he wanted to work himself hard, something he couldn't do when his fans and friends were around. And then he had found Code Name: D.O looking at him.

 

Baekhyun almost attacked before reminding himself to smile, act shy, be friendly. He didn't know how long the agent had been watching at him, and just how much his body language had given away. So he cautiously greeted the agent. As he hurried around, trying to dry the sweat from his body and get his t-shirt on, he realized something about himself.

 

He was _actually_ flustered. It wasn't all act. Something about this agent, this too-handsome man, made Baekhyun self-conscious. He couldn't help but look meekly upon the smaller man with glasses and cute eyes. _Cute? Get a hold on yourself!_

 

Soon after, they were saying goodbye and heading to opposite directions. Baekhyun was in the elevator, crossing fifth floor, when he realized something else. Code Name: D.O was going _outside._ Which meant, the apartment was unmanned. Jungin was alone.

 

Was this what people called _silver lining?_ If so, Baekhyun would be a fool not to grab at it, and find his way in this absolute dark mess of a situation. He bounced on his feet, his body still thumping with heat and power after the exercise. Lifting up his left leg, he slid a section off the bottom of his sneakers. Inside, there was a small but dependable dagger. He clutched it in his fist lightly, it was small enough to completely disappear inside it.

 

As the elevator sped up to the nineteenth floor, Baekhyun's heart calmed down. He remembered that camera hidden in the bronze 9 on his neighbor's door and faltered. Suppose he _could_ breach the apartment and kill Jungin, but he'd be leaving behind a sizeable chunk of evidence. He was sure that after the deed was done, he could erase the hard drive on those cameras, but then, it would be evident that Jungin was killed because of this case. Mr. Park will not appreciate that.

 

He clutched the dagger tighter. The elevator stopped, and he stepped out. With a disappointed sigh, Baekhyun forced himself to walk normally. Walk past the apartment 19-1, and go inside the apartment 19-3, which belonged to him.

 

His mother used to say that if someone was trying to avoid you, be it a person or fate, you owed it yourself to chase after it relentlessly. He was going to chase after this job until he finally found success. But he would have up his game because being the shy and friendly neighbor was not getting him anywhere.

.

.

 

Jungin woke up to someone licking her face. She abruptly sat up in her bed and blinked against the sun in her eyes. For some strange reason, agent D.O had refused to put curtains around the home, so the sun had free reign all day.

 

Once her vision adjusted and she found the culprits, she screamed out in delight. "Jjangu! Monggu! My babies!"

 

She attacked her dogs much like the dogs had attacked her. Her heart leapt with joy and she didn't know if she was dreaming or this was actually happening. D.O was standing in the doorway, arms crossed over his chest and a restrained expression on his face.

 

Jungin couldn't help beaming at him. "Thank you so much! This is... this is so generous of you!"

 

D.O looked serious but his voice was light as he said, "You're feeding them. I hope they are potty trained, and if I see them taking care of business anywhere near my bathroom or the rest of the house, I'll put a bullet in them."

 

Jungin was far to happy to take threats seriously. "I promise!"

 

Satisfied, D.O finally allowed a smile on his face. "Come out, breakfast is almost ready."

 

At the word _breakfast,_ Monggu and Jjangu ran for the agent, almost tackling him to the floor. D.O made a growling noise at the back of his throat, and the dogs suddenly leapt down, standing still. "That's right," the agent said, dusting himself off. "I'm the alpha in this house!"

 

Jungin couldn't stop smiling that entire day.

.

.

 

Chanyeol was in another one of high end clubs that Seoul and Incheon had to offer. He didn't remember if he'd been here before, or if this club had tried to plagiarize the purple/black concept of another club. But he didn't care, as long as his glass was full, and his arm was around a relatively pretty looking girl.

 

He didn't remember how many days had passed. Since he saw _her._

 

He hadn't _seen her_ seen her, but what he had seen had yet to left his mind. She was there constantly, when he was trying to work or attend meetings or deal with the underground stuff. She was there when he went home, watching him, judging him. She was there whenever he tried to get laid, the nameless girl suddenly transforming into one Kim Jungin.

 

He'd gone to a doctor about it, and was diagnosed with minor hallucinations of pre-Parkinsons, whatever that was. He also tried staying sober, but drunk or not, she never left his waking thoughts. And then there were the dreams.

 

He dreamt of that night, the night he'd found out about Jung's betrayal and went out to kill him. He saw the events in a new light now. He saw himself smiling at Jungin, as she stood under a spotlight, watching him. He pulled the trigger and Jungin started screaming. He slowly walked towards her, grabbed her in a forceful embrace, and then, shot her in the neck. As her blood splattered all over his chest, Chanyeol would wake up screaming into his pillow.

 

It was a culmination of the truth, his dreams. He had killed CEO Jung, and now, he'd set B to kill Jungin. He might not be holding the gun, but she would die because of him. Maybe then, I'll stop seeing her everywhere.

 

He called B after a few days. "Is she dead yet?" _Is she impossible to reach yet? Is she buried yet?_ Because if she's gone, then maybe he wouldn't feel like he wanted to see her again.

 

The girl in his arms nuzzled his neck, whispering, "Let's go, honey."

 

And Chanyeol listened. Even if for a night, he could forget Jungin by losing himself in another's body. Until she was dead, this was all he could do.

 


	4. Dog Days Have Begun

 

 

The first time Jungin snuck out wasn't fantastic. It was a test really, and the results of it were so shocking and sudden that she didn't know what to do about herself. She'd observed agent D.O strictly for about two days. And she realized that he used a simple combination of numbers as passwords. He changed them every day, but it never changed from those combinations. On Monday he'd used 12494, and then he changed it to 22391. He also used 12193, but only for his laptop and phone. 

 

She'd been unable to sleep that night. Jjangu had been feeling sickly and she'd spent the day caring for him. Now that the dogs were resting, and agent D.O had also retired to bed, she wasn't sure how to spend her time. She was tired but she had a restless energy through her body. Watching T.V on mute wasn't fun either, and she'd been sitting there staring at the moving images for several minutes when the urge struck her. She looked at the entrance door, and then made up her mind. 

 

Agent D.O had installed password keypads on both sides of the door, outside to keep the threats away, and inside to keep Jungin from leaving. The sudden light as she pushed the first number startled her, she almost expected to hear that buzzing alarm D.O had installed on it. But nothing happened. The apartment was silent. 223 she pressed, passed, then pressed 91. The keypad turned green, beeping in acceptance. Jungin flinched at the sound, it seemed to echo off the walls.

 

When nothing happened still, she opened the door and stepped outside. It was probably her imagination but the air in the hallway felt clear, sharp. Her ribcage trembled with her breathing. She was shocked by the success, but also thrilled to finally get a whiff of freedom. But she wasn't brave enough to explore her freedom further, so she turned back, entered the code again, and went to bed. Sleep didn't come to her for a long time.

.

.

 

Baekhyun rubbed his eyes as he stepped outside the building. He was certain he'd seen Code Name: D.O with two dogs in the park, but he could also be dreaming. Or crazy. When the image still didn't go away, Baekhyun retraced the entire history of his spying. _Why hadn't I seen the dogs before?_ He would have lost his mind altogether if he hadn't remembered Code Name: D.O's sudden trip that night.

 

He was so gone in his thoughts that he didn't notice when his feet carried him to the nearest dog. It was fluffy and brown and the cutest thing since Code Name: D.O's eyes. The agent looked up suddenly but Baekhyun had already knelt to rub his hands all over the soft fur. He knew he was smiling wide, but he honestly couldn't care. He used to have a dog, once upon a time when he he was still a naive boy who dreamed of becoming a civil servant. His dog had died, because he hadn't been able to afford food enough to feed his family much less a dog.

 

"What's his name?" he asked, still distracted by the dog's cute antics.

 

Code Name: D.O cleared his throat. "Monggu. He's devil."

 

Baekhyun laughed. All dogs were devils. In his experience anyways. "You've never brought them out before. If I'd known I'd have kidnapped them already."

 

He was rewarded by a soft smile. "That's exactly why."

 

 _What are you waiting for?_ Baekhyun realized that dogs were a good way to extend the olive branch. So he got up and started casually, "I can take them for a walk. I swear I won't steal them."

 

A sudden change came over the agent, his smile falling to give way to suspicion. "Why would you offer? I'm perfectly capable of-"

 

"Ah, you misunderstood," Baekhyun said hurriedly, trying to salvage the situation, as well as trying to get himself under the spotlight. I'm trying here. You've got to notice something about me first. "It's just that I have this friend who's an introvert. He also has the same psychological condition. I mean you never come out of your apartment and I figured... well I just thought these poor kids could use some air."

 

The agent blinked. "I'm not an introvert. I don't have any psychological condition."

 

Baekhyun tried very hard not to get the agent to expose himself, but he was trying to be normal. "So you just don't... mingle. Okay, I get it. I think?"

 

The agent looked completely flustered now, Baekhyun had him where he wanted him. He wanted to see how Code Name: D.O would try to explain himself next, but he had better experience with people than the agent obviously.

 

"Anyways," he said, trying to sound polite, "I'll leave you to do your thing then." And then he jogged out.

 

He'd taken only a few steps when the agent called, "Wait!"

 

He tried not to smirk as he turned back around, expression mildly confused. "Yes?"

 

The agent shifted on his feet. Then: "Have them back in an hour." He extended the leash to him.

 

Surprised, Baekhyun took the leash. He hadn't expected the agent to actually let go of the dogs. He had expected the agent to try to explain his situation with some ridiculous story. "Um, two hours."

 

"Why?"

 

"I'm going to have breakfast somewhere," Baekhyun explained. He wasn't lying. The food made by the building staff was okay, but he wanted something different today.

 

The agent frowned, his eyes turning skyward in an extremely cute way. Then he said, "I'll have the breakfast ready."

 

Baekhyun blinked. Smiled. "You're inviting me for breakfast? Does that officially make us neighbors now?"

 

The agent didn't reply. Instead he sighed, eyes turning to heavens again, and walked back to the building. Baekhyun watched him leave, noticing that the agent's pretend callousness still held his police training - straight back, perfect steps, gaze on the central point in front of him. He had to admit, the agent was certainly more appealing in the sunlight.

.

.

 

 _He smiles an awful lot,_ was Kyungsoo's first impression of the neighbor when he suddenly showed up to pet Jungin's dogs. His next thought was something along the lines of, _He's really handsome,_ or something like that but by then Kyungsoo had forgotten how to actually think. Instead, he was frozen on the spot, just watching. 

 

So when the neighbor started speaking about walking dogs and psychological conditions, Kyungsoo had suddenly retreated like a pouncing viper. Unknowingly, he'd completely let his guard down in front of the neighbor. And once the situation was explained, he realized that, in retrospect, it was perfectly logical for the neighbor to think these sort of things. 

 

 _Jungin would probably kill me._ He wasn't even trying to get dramatic. He'd seen exactly how much she loved her dogs, and the news that he'd just handed them over to a complete stranger would be as unwelcome as the thought of someone coming over for breakfast. He berated himself over it as he took the elevator up and tried to think of the best ways to break the news. He also thought about what sort of breakfast items he could prepare. About what kind of things the neighbor liked to have in breakfast.

 

"Good," was Jungin's response as he finally told her. She stretched herself on the sofa. "Jjangu was sick all night. He needed the air. And I need my sleep."

 

Kyungsoo sighed. _I'm never going to expect the usual from her ever again._ "Can you go and sleep in your room? I also invited him for dinner."

 

Jungin's eyes snapped wide. Wider than he thought was possible. This news had certainly elicited an unusual response. "You did? Can I watch you two through the laptop?"

 

 _Yep, never again._ "Sure. If he turns out to be a mass murderer or a rapist, I'll be satisfied that at least you will be a witness. Again."

 

She shuffled off the sofa, grabbed the laptop and mumbled, "Don't mention it."

.

.

 

Baekhyun decided to shower before bringing the dogs to the neighbor's doorstep. As he stood outside the door of apartment 19-1, (Jjangu and Monggu wrapping themselves familarly to his legs) he couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment. The proverbial gate that had stood between him and his mission, was going to fall off, no less by the gatekeeper himself.

 

Feeling extremely conscious of the fact that he was being watched, he carefully touched the door bell. A distinctive _ding dong!_ echoed in the bowels of the apartment. And a second later, Code Name: D.O opened the door.

 

Baekhyun felt his breath as it stuck in his throat. It wasn't because the agent had gone an extra mile or anything, but he'd combed his hair back and put on black and red checkered shirt over black skinny jeans. It was casual and comfortable and Baekhyun found himself wondering if this was how the agent dressed on his off-duty days. And topped with those glasses and a small, barely-there smile... it wasn't even a surprise that he'd been robbed of breath.

 

"You're five minutes late," said the agent, holding the door open so that Jjangu and Monggu ran in, dragging Baekhyun along who'd been holding the leash.

 

"Oh, really it's their fault," Baekhyun chuckled. "Um... I'm sorry... um..."

 

"Do Kyungsoo," the agent held out a hand.

 

Baekhyun searched through his mental database and realized there'd been no Do Kyungsoo in the police records he'd hacked into. Which meant this could be a fake a name.  Regardless, he was still reeling from the fact that he was able to enter this house, and about to get close to his enemy who suddenly had a name.

 

"And what shall I call you?" Code Name - er Kyungsoo asked, suddenly leaning very close as he shut the door behind Baekhyun and caught up. 

 

Flustered, Baekhyun blurted, "Byun Baekhyun." And then he thought, _Shit! Did I just give away my real name?!_

 

"Byun-ssi," Kyungsoo rolled the name on his tongue, thoughtfully leading him to the kitchen island. "I hope you like cheese omelette."

 

"I love cheese omelette. But no cucumber, please." _Shit, I just gave him a weapon to kill with! What the fuck is wrong with me?_

 

Kyungsoo frowned at that but shrugged it off. He gestured to the stools along the kitchen island and started gathering enough cutlery for two. Baekhyun took this time to observe the house itself. It was sophisticated like his own apartment, but unlike his mess of a place, the agent had set up a nice space for his charge. Leather sofa, plush rugs, abstract paintings and flower pots decorated the living area. He was certain that the bedrooms would be equally lovely. In the white house, each object was like a sudden but enchanting splash of color.

 

"It's a nice place," Baekhyun said like a good neighbor, "Did you decorate it yourself?"

 

"No, it was an interior artist."

 

"You must give me his number. My apartment is in need of assistance."

 

Baekhyun turned his focus on the agent now. It would be so easy, to slip a knife into his ribs. Kyungsoo stood with his back to him, wiping cups with a cloth meticulously. But Baekhyun had seen enough police training in the agent's mannerism to know that he would never make it unscathed. Best course of action, he reminded himself, was to make the agent let his guard down first.

 

"I really hope I'm not intruding on you."

 

Kyungsoo shook his head. "No, that's really nothing. You walked my dogs."

 

Baekhyun smiled at that. _Bless the dogs of the world._ Speaking of, Monggu and Jjangu were apparently scrabbling against a closed door. Baekhyun got up absently to allow them to go in, but as soon as he turned the knob and found out that the door was locked, he realized that Kyungsoo was no longer in the kitchen. He was standing right behind him, his eyes hiding something fierce. 

 

 _So this is her room._ At least now he knew why he hadn't spotted her in any windows, the windows here faced east. _I have to find another building to spy from._  

 

Smiling like he hadn't noticed Kyungsoo's fierce glare, or the gun that he had in his hand, folded neatly at his back, he said, "I think the dogs want to get inside."

 

Kyungsoo blinked, his glare vanishing into a neutral expression. "Let them be. I want to train them using another bathroom, and they probably want to go in this one."

 

 _Nicely saved,_ Baekhyun had to admit. But he silently checked off another useful information on his mental list. Maybe this job wouldn't be that hard.

.

.

 

Kyungsoo was reevaluating his decision of inviting the neighbor. In the last thirty or so minutes, he had acted strange enough that any normal person would freak out, but the neighbor kept a smooth conversation going, regardless of Kyungsoo's jumpy actions. He tried to remind himself that the neighbor didn't know anything about Jungin yet, and that earlier he'd only tried to help the damn dogs. Still, he had grabbed the colt from where he'd hidden it and almost shot him, hiding it behind his back just in time.

 

But after that, the situation was under control somewhat. Baekhyun kept up a stream of steady conversation and Kyungsoo tried his best not to get too interested. Though, he _was._  

 

Apparently the mysterious occupation of his neighbor that kept him inside at odd hours was that of a writer. Right now, Baekhyun was working on a thriller project, and trying to balance his free time and diet around it. He wasn't that successful, and had been skipping meals without meaning to. 

 

"It's just so fucking frustrating," Baekhyun exclaimed to himself. He had his chin propped on a hand and Kyungsoo couldn't help but look at that hand occasionally, at the mole on his thumb finger. _Since when do I find people's hands attractive?_ "I dream of the things I want to write, or just think of them when I'm having a meal, but it comes out differently from how it was in my head. So I have to write it the minute I think of it, or it's lost."

 

Kyungsoo had finished cooking. He started setting up the dishes right there on the kitchen counter in front of Baekhyun. His neighbor looked quite shocked by the array, and even inhaled the smoke like a starving beast. "This is... Are you my Mom? 'Cuz this smells like my mom's food."

 

Kyungsoo smiled. He always loved when someone appreciated his food. Even if they were nosy, loudly interesting and mildly attractive neighbors. "Let's eat then."

 

Baekhyun smiled too, and for once Kyungsoo wasn't annoyed by it.


	5. Breakfast at Kyungsoo's

 

 _Silence is his strongest point,_ was Baekhyun's observation as he continued talking into the air. He was trying not to give away any useful piece of information, and only talked about the story that fit with his cover. Even if he didn't speak, Baekhyun had an impression that the agent was hanging on to _every_ single word he had said thus far. Kyungsoo had started laying different items of breakfast in front of him, apart from the promised cheese omelette. His sudden comment about his mother hadn't been for nothing, he really was reminded of his mother's food. _At least back when she still-_

 

Shaking away the thoughts, he prepared himself to be on guard against the agent. At first getting close had been the objective but if Kyungsoo kept doing these sort of surprising things he might- he _might_ slip and make a mistake. This wasn't the time to be making any mistakes. And now he was trying in vain to observe the agent as well as eat his food; it was a struggle to not cry out or moan because it was too damn delicious.

 

"What do you do for living?" Baekhyun asked, trying to sound casual because the silence wasn't comfortable either.

 

"I work from home. I have an online job; booking clients for my company overseas," Kyungsoo answered mechanically and Baekhyun wondered exactly how many times this excuse had been given to countless number of people before. "At times I have to go on assignments too, but usually I can work comfortably."

 

"Lucky you," Baekhyun said, and he was surprised that he actually felt unlucky. His job (the real one and the part-time one) was anything but lucky. "You get to meet a number of people without even leaving home. No wonder you don't like getting out much. Well, you don't have to worry. I can cure this madness, in fact, I'd like a pal too. It's exhausting staying indoors all alone at all time. Especially for people like me-"

 

He looked up just in time to see Kyungsoo looking at him strangely again. Before he could elaborate himself, he noticed something, and moved without much thought.  
.  
.

Kyungsoo chose not to comment. He was trying to figure out exactly what he could do to discourage this thing from happening again. He was being polite, and he had somehow already paid for his rudeness by offering the neighbor breakfast. There was no need to extend this interaction any further, on any other day. He couldn't keep Jungin hidden otherwise. He just didn't know how he could politely tell the neighbor to mind his own life and leave him alone. There was no way for it but to say it outright; especially if the guy was getting ideas about spending even more time together.

 

But as he formed the words in his own head, he wasn't prepared for Baekhyun reaching across the kitchen island and touching an index finger to his lower lip. Kyungsoo froze, and saw the neighbor do the same. A sharp sensation zinged through him, and he was suddenly very aware of another man close to him. They had a solid block of kitchen island between them, and yet... it was _too_ _much_.

 

"What are you doing?" Kyungsoo asked, hating that his voice was unsteady.

 

Blinking, as if coming out of a dream, Baekhyun hurriedly put pressure on his lower lip with his finger, swiping at it. "There's... something on your... you had food there..."

 

He didn't sound quiet so steady either, and that was the only reason why Kyungsoo was letting it off easy. No, that _wasn't_ the only reason, he just needed to disappear somehow.

 

Baekhyun stood up, looking _anywhere_ but at Kyungsoo. "I need to use the restroom."

 

Kyungsoo pointed left. "Second door."

 

He didn't even wait for Baekhyun to fully leave as he too stood up from his perch and strode a few steps back into the kitchen, throwing his weight on the sink and opening the cold water tap as he splashed his face, repeatedly, to make it stop tingling. A vain effort. The place where Baekhyun had touched, was _scorching_ with awareness of that touch still - no amount of cold water could erase it, it seemed.

 

He grabbed a glass from the cabinet above and filled it from tap water, drinking it in one go. His heart was beating too fast, too unrealistically. _Damn, what am I a teenager?_ Luckily, Baekhyun still hadn't emerged, so he had time enough to find tissue towels and wipe his wet face. He sat down at the table again, and practiced his neutral face. _Just a small thing..._ it was barely even an incident, and yet it had managed to ruin everything so easily. _I can't afford distractions. Not if I have to protect her._

 

One thing was clear. Baekhyun had to go. _Somehow._  
 _._  
 _._

 

Jungin enjoyed the spectacle for a few minutes. It was hard not to laugh aloud when D.O panicked and almost pulled a gun on his guest; but she somehow managed to keep silent. She was also glad that her dogs looked happy, healthy, and close enough to the neighbor already. Just because she was a prisoner, didn't mean they had to be too. She regretted as soon as she thought it, though. She wasn't a prisoner. D.O treated her like a celebrity, and kept her comfortable. She shouldn't complain.

 

Most importantly, she shouldn't cause trouble again. So thinking, she minimized the windows that showed the CCTV footage and pulled out the folder which stored the videos. Feeling sick to her stomach, she found the video from last night, the one that showed her leaving through the hallway and front door. She deleted it, then erased it from the recycle bin. Still, she couldn't just make D.O suspicious by erasing a whole day. Feeling even worse, she made a copy of the recording from one week back, and pasted it in the same folder, renaming it with the date form last night. It was a good enough illusion. But if D.O was as strict as he seemed and he checked the videos again and again... he would know that something was amiss. But she hoped that he wouldn't bother to check anything from last night.

 

Taking a few deep breaths, she closed the folder and maximized the CCTV windows again. She'd missed something, it seemed, because Kyungsoo was at the sink, splashing water on his face. At first, she thought that the guest must have left already, but then she noticed movement in another small window. The guest was in Kyungsoo's restroom. And he was also splashing water on his face. Jungin cocked her head. _What just happened here?_  
.  
.

 

When Baekhyun returned to his apartment, he found his part-time job phone ringing loudly, insistently. To be safe, he'd left that phone here. He didn't need to look at the screen to know who was calling. He had just a handful of clients after all.

 

"Hello, Mr. Park."

 

Voice dead and dry, he was asked, "Is she dead?"

 

Baekhyun sighed. He actually pitied Mr. Park at the moment. He was a rich bastard who was sued to getting things done fast. In all their previous business ventures, Baekhyun had managed to give fast results, and that had kept Mr. Park happy. But even he could feel that this whole thing was taking a toll on his employer.

 

"I've located her hideout, sir. It won't be long."

 

Mr. Park made a noise that could have been a dry chuckle. "I'm scared of what she's doing to me, B. I'm terrified."

 

Baekhyun frowned at the darkness in his home. His shuttered windows still couldn't block the splendid sunlight outside. "Are you drunk?"

 

"I think so."

 

"Where are you?"

 

There was a noise again, this time it sounded like plastic shopping bags being shaken. "In a room. I don't know who is sleeping next to me, though. She looks familiar." A moment later, Mr. Park groaned. "Fuck, it's my secretary."

 

Personally, Baekhyun didn't care if Mr. Park was sleeping with his own mother, but he had to admit that this was the first time he was experiencing such an unprofessional state from him. "Should I clear it up for you?"

 

"Huh? No, no." Another sound. This time Baekhyun was sure Park had fallen. "AHHH... No, I'm fine. I can get myself home. Just... kill her. Please. Or she won't disappear."

 

"I'll do that. Take care of yourself, Mr. Park."

 

Mr. Park chuckled. "Now I know I must _really_ sound bad, if even you are telling me to take care."

 

"As long as you know that."

 

He disconnected the call and turned on the lights. He walked to where his laptop was placed in the middle of the living room. It was a low raise table, and before it was a mattress where he slept. The whole apartment was empty, expect for the boxes. All boxes and all of them filled with his precious books. Well, some of them were also filled with ammunition and weapons, but he was the only one who knew which ones. And that was fine. That was the goal.

 

He logged in, and cast a glance at the chapter he was struggling with. But he couldn't focus. Not right now. Not when he wanted to run back and grab that agent and... And _nothing!_ He didn't even know _what_ he wanted to do. What he would have done if he hadn't come back to his senses back there.

 

His intention was honest. He knew that. But as soon as he touched those full and stunning lips, he was gone. He had contemplated - for one whole minute - to jump across the island and ravage the agent where he sat. But then Kyungsoo had spoken and he had woken up.

 

He still couldn't shake it though. That _urge._ He hadn't kept his sexuality secret form anyone, but he wasn't exactly an open book either. He didn't do affairs. He only perused sexual gratification when it became unbearable. But a dam of want had burst inside of him by a single touch that he'd landed on that man. It didn't even matter that he was dangerous, an enemy. His mind buzzed with just one, conclusive sound. It was the sound of heart, beating loud enough to shake his whole core.

 

Shaking his head, he opened up a sticky note on his desktop. He wrote:  
1.Jungin is in east room.  
2.Get Kyungsoo out of there, whatever it took.

  
Satisfied with that simple plan, he called a number. He hated to rely on his none-too-trust-able business colleagues, but this plan would require another set of hands. And _feet._


	6. Breaking Bad

  
  
Baekhyun sat, restraining his own urge to burst out with excuses, as Sehun glared at him from the other side of the room.  
  
The other man had arrived a while back, and considering the conditions of Kyungsoo and his surveillance, he'd had to come from the roof, and in through Baekhyun's window. He was pissed about that, and had declared, "The next time you ask me to enter like a pathetic thief, I'll kill you."  
  
And then Baekhyun had explained about his situation, and with every word, Sehun's eyebrow rose to level bitch. "So..." he drawls after moment, "You want me to help you out in taking care of a small-tit bitch and five-foot-shit police agent because apparently they are too much for you to handle. And to do that, you invited me here through the damn window only to inform me that you will not be assisting with any of it because of your impending "injury"."  
  
Baekhyun wanted to sink into the floor. Their relationship was better described as on-and-off. Whether it was business, or (a few times) sex, it all depended on Sehun's mood. His mood always varied from completely arrogant to completely murderous. Right now, it was the latter.   
  
A few times in past when Baekhyun had asked for his help, it had always been the things that were truly big. Assassination of that journalist, and the elimination of the family of one of Congressman running for election. But this was laughable, Baekhyun knew that. But he also couldn't admit to Sehun the real reason he needed help. _I'm attracted to him, and it's distracting me from the mission._  
  
Sehun sighed, at length. "Fine. But it's going to cost you."  
  
As usual. "What would you like this time around?"  
  
For the last few missions, Sehun had asked for different types of payments. A complete set of Baekhyun's novels, all signed, a diamond studded leash for his pet dog, and a blueprint for one of Busan's secret services office. Some of these items had been feasible, others damn near expensive; Baekhyun had to exhaust his bank accounts. But he still braced himself for the payment of this one.  
  
"I want you to forge a new identity for me."  
  
 Baekhyun blinked. "A temporary identity...?"  
  
"No, I want the whole deal. Past records, long term records, future records, I want them all to belong to my new name. Sehun should become nonexistent." Sehun's face when he said that, it was dark with an emotion Baekhyun had never seen before. It was almost earnest.  
  
"You're changing your identity permanently?" Baekhyun couldn't help but ask.  
  
Sehun's only answer was a shrug.  
  
"Can I ask you why?" That serious face was too much to bear   
  
"Last spring when we slept together in Beijing on a job," Sehun elaborated, "we talked about something important. Something regarding our lives."  
  
Baekhyun frowned, trying to remember. And then it hit him. "You are in love with someone!"  
  
That conversation from long ago, it had been about their double lives. Their honest work, and the dishonest one. And as they came down from the high of their love making, Sehun had said. "I'll throw it all away."  
  
Baekhyun still hadn't calmed down, but he managed, "What. . .?"  
  
"You asked before if I ever got tired of this life. And now I'm telling you I'll throw it away."  
  
Baekhyun had turned to face him. "When will you do that exactly?"  
  
"If I fell in love with someone. In love for real. I'll throw away this dishonest life." Sehun didn't sound like he was joking.  
  
Baekhyun shrugged as he lit up a cigarette and inhaled. He hadn't believed in love, that it even existed.  
  
He still didn't. He nearly laughed at Sehun for saying nonsense. But watching Sehun, at his serious eyes, Baekhyun couldn't find it in himself to make fun of him. Instead, he asked, "May I ask who it is? Please, tell me it's not me."  
  
Sehun snorted. "I won't fall for you even if God himself came to earth to convince me. No, it's someone else..."  
  
Baekhyun waited for a name. Sehun swallowed, his eyes clouding in a way that suggested he was deeply moved about a memory. "He was just a job, you know. And when I tried to go through with it I... I just couldn't. I found myself simply following him, watching him. I was noticing things about him that were not even helpful regarding my mission, but after each discovery I felt so satisfied like I'd accomplished something great. And then we met, and things just went downhill."   
  
Sehun smiled. It was the purest expression that Baekhyun had ever seen on him. "He's a school teacher; kindergartners all love him. On my way to follow him, I accidentally tripped a kid. And he charged out with a dark expression and gave me the scolding of my life. I couldn't take my eyes off of him. I... God, B! I didn't even suspect it was happening to me, but I fell hard for him."  
  
Baekhyun sat still. He tried not to think about how this mission, how he _himself_ sometimes found observing things about Agent D.O that weren't even relevant. _No,_ he shook himself. _Our situation is completely different._  
  
"What's his name?"  
  
Sehun almost blushed saying it. "Yixing. He's from China. Sometimes he mispronounces Korean words and it's so darn cute."  
  
Baekhyun couldn't keep himself from chuckling now. "Fuck, man. You've got it bad."  
  
Sehun didn't even deny. "So, I'll need a new identity. I want to be able to face him proudly without any stains of past. And it also means that you and I will never sleep together again."  
  
Baekhyun wasn't troubled about that part. Sleeping around wasn't his priority for now. "No need to remind me, dude. And I'll do it. Just help me for one last time."  
  
Sehun nodded. "For old time's sake."  
.  
.  
  
Kyungsoo was distracted these days. It had been one day since he called Baekhyun over for breakfast, and since then the other man hadn't come out of his apartment. Not that Kyungsoo was keeping tabs. He tried his best to entertain Jungin and her dogs whenever necessary, but he found himself staring at walls and remembering the feeling of that damn finger on his lips. _I need to get laid. That's what's wrong with me._  
  
The night after the breakfast, Kyungsoo sat in front of his laptop, and typed Byun Baekhyun in the search engine. At once, more than three thousand results had popped up. He even had a Wikipedia page dedicated to him.   
  
Kyungsoo learned all he needed to know from there. Baekhyun had written his first novel, a standalone called _Mama_. It had failed to garner much success, but it was enough for readers to know of him. The next work was an explosive trilogy called _The Exo Planet Chronicles._ It was a bestseller across nation and had been translated into several languages. The current work Baekhyun was doing was about a superhero that solved crimes that the police department couldn't. As a police officer, Kyungsoo found the premise a tad bit offensive, but he was intrigued to know more.   
  
In the end, he'd ended up buying the e-books of the trilogy. He read the first chapter of the first book, and found that it was interesting. _Very_ interesting. Baekhyun's writing style was nearly poetic, and there was something about the characterization that felt real.   
  
To make the matters worse, Baekhyun had many pictures. All of them warm and smiley, with fans, at fan signs, at parties and events. Some were paparazzi shots, and some were his own selfies. Eventually he'd found Baekhyun's instagram, and boy was he in for a ride. It was filled with Baekhyun's pictures, pictures of things and places Baekhyun's been interested in. And the latest update showed Baekhyun on a walk with Jungin's dogs. He'd taken multiple pictures, holding Monggu in his arms, and rolling in the grass with Jjangu. And the caption read: _**Jjangu and Monggu, let's meet every day #doglover**_  
  
Kyungsoo had smiled involuntarily, and then felt a bit guilty that he was going to take away Baekhyun's dream of meeting the dogs again. Because after what had happened at the breakfast, not just the skin-on-skin contact, but also Baekhyun's near discovery of Jungin, it wasn't safe to even consider letting the writer into his home.   
  
The next evening, Jungin had shaken him awake where he'd fallen asleep on the couch. He'd stayed up all night last night, typing up his report to the station, and lost track of time. Now he could barely keep his eyes open.  
  
"Hey, what's the time?" He rubbed his eyes. He had fallen asleep with his glasses on so they had made a considerable dent in the side of his cheek.   
  
"It's not midnight yet," Jungin replied softly. "Don't worry I made dinner already. But that's not why I asked you to wake up. The neighbor showed up again, but you were sleeping too soundly for me to wake you."  
  
At once, Kyungsoo sat up straight. "Why was he here?" He didn't ask if Jungin had stupidly opened the door, he knew Jungin wasn't stupid, and even if she tried, she couldn't possibly guess the pass code.   
  
"He looked bad, tired. I think he's starving himself or something. But after a few moments he just left when no one answered. Monggu and Jjangu were happy to see him though, through the screen."  
  
Kyungsoo sighed. "Well, if he needs something he'll show up again. Or I could stop by to ask..." He paused. There was no _need_ for any of that.  
  
"He went down the elevator," Jungin said, walking towards the kitchen island where she'd already set up the food. "He's probably gotten himself something to eat already."  
  
Kyungsoo nodded in agreement, and lost himself in the pork soup Jungin had concocted. It was really good.  
.  
.  
  
Baekhyun came back from his errands late at night. Kyungsoo saw him enter the building, again carrying two boxes of something and wobbling under the weight. He intercepted Baekhyun in the hallway, standing in his half open door.   
  
Baekhyun smiled as soon as he saw him, carrying himself and the box close to him. "Hey. I stopped by earlier but I guess you were busy..."  
  
Kyungsoo nodded, trying to keep up his good-neighbor persona. "I was in the shower, so I think I missed you."  
  
I missed you... that had sounded not right.   
  
Baekhyun smiled again, "I wanted to ask you to come out and have dinner with me. I mean, I wanted to say thanks and... I _mean_... things were not going great and I practically ran out on you when you were so kind to make me breakfast. I just wanted to make amends..." His face had gotten oddly flushed by the time he stopped stammering.  
  
Kyungsoo tried not to think of exactly what had made things awkward. Tried, but failed. Baekhyun's touch was fresh in his mind. But he pretended to not care. "Amends? What for? You didn't do anything wrong..."  
  
Baekhyun looked down, shuffled on his feet and gripping the boxes tighter. "I guess not. Well, I just... I ran into a friend and ended up having dinner with him. So it's not a total loss. We can have dinner some other time then?"  
  
He sounded so hopeful. And Kyungsoo's ears perked at the mention of a friend. He remembered Baekhyun saying that he didn't have many friends, which meant whoever it was, must be someone special. He didn't know why he cared, but he was curious about the other man in his neighbor's life. He blinked at the train of his thoughts.  
  
"You don't have to make amends," Kyungsoo said instead. "There's no need to. And... I'll think about dinner, I'm specific about where to eat." It's not a date, it's not. Just two neighbors getting ready to know each other.  
  
Baekhyun's smile went from awkward to dazzling at once. He jumped a bit, and readjusts his grip on the boxes. "Great! Then I'll... see you later?"  
  
 _No, you can't. I'm going to blow you off if need be._ That's what he should've said. Instead, Kyungsoo shrugged. "I guess."  
  
Baekhyun's face morphed into smiley determination as he walked off. Kyungsoo noticed that he had his key hooked in his pinky finger, obviously prepared to open his own door by himself. Kyungsoo sighed, he had been rude, and Baekhyun had learned an important lesson. Still, he didn't go inside, and peered over the threshold as Baekhyun struggled with the boxes and tried to open the door. It appeared that the boxes were heavy, which meant he'd lied to Kyungsoo. _Because he didn't want to be embarrassed into asking for my help._ At times like these, when he had to offend decent people, he really hated his job, no matter how nice and helpful it was for the witnesses.  
  
Another thing he hated was that he always had to disregard his personal interests for the sake of the job. And then he caught himself. There was _no_ personal interest when it came to Baekhyun. _None_. Although, denying that he wasn't attracted to the other man was same as denying he was breathing to stay alive.   
  
He was slightly distracted by Monggu appearing in his feet, and then disaster struck.   
  
Baekhyun successfully opened the door, gave a triumphant huff, and stepped inside. His other foot snagged on the welcome mattress outside the door. He fell back, still clutching the boxes. His eyes were so round Kyungsoo could see the fear clearly. And then he connected to the floor.  
  
He screamed as Kyungsoo ran out the door. Monggu at his heals. Baekhyun was screaming too much, too loud. Something wasn't right about his contorted arm... Kyungsoo knelt beside him and grabbed Baekhyun, trying to get him up.  
  
 _"AAAARGHHH... NOOO..."_ Baekhyun screamed again. And that's when Kyungsoo noticed the bent angle of his arm.   
  
Baekhyun trembled with each breath, his other arm helplessly supporting himself up, even as Kyungsoo grabbed him around the waist. As they stood up, Kyungsoo glanced at the contents of the boxes and almost swore. There was a printer and a new oven, which Baekhyun had been apparently lugging all by himself.   
  
_I should've helped him,_ Kyungsoo thought bitterly. _I should've helped him even if he didn't want it._  
  
But he couldn't get any angrier, because he'd just noticed that Baekhyun was trying not to cry. His eyes were shining with unshed tears, and he was biting his lower lip in order to not scream anymore. He was still trembling.   
  
Kyungsoo didn't think twice as he helped Baekhyun inside his apartment. This was the first time he was here, and he noticed the complete disaster the place was. He also noticed the mattress on the floor, set up with a computer system beside it. He led Baekhyun there.  
  
"Let me take a look," he said, as casually as he could. "Is it broken?"  
  
Baekhyun whimpered in answer. It was broken; his arm looking all kinds of freaky at the angle it was bent. It was his dominant arm too, Kyungsoo remembered. Baekhyun had done everything using his right hand. Which meant right now, and for whoever knew how long, Baekhyun was helpless.  
  
"You need a doctor," Kyungsoo sighed.  
  
Baekhyun swallowed, eyes blinking. When he spoke his voice was desperate. "I need to hand in my manuscript tomorrow. I have to meet my deadline and... Now I don't... What am I going to _do,_ Kyungsoo?"  
  
Every detective instinct in Kyungsoo screamed to save this man in need. More than that, his own feelings of guilt urged him to start making amends. But at that moment, Monggu appeared next to them, no doubt following him. At the sight of the dog, he suddenly remembered that he'd left his door wide open, making it easy for anyone to enter there and get to Jungin.  
  
Baekhyun was looking up at him, torn. And Kyungsoo decided what to do. "Stay here. I'm going to get help."  
.  
.  
  
Jungin stood in the doorway, which was left wide open. That's how she knew something must have happened if Kyungsoo had just run out like that. She stood there as Jjangu stayed beside her; Monggu had left a while ago too.  
  
And then Kyungsoo was charging back inside. That's how she knew something _bad_ must have happened. He was trying to remain calm, but she was nothing if not shrewd. His distress was shining in his eyes, in his clenched fists.   
  
First, he made a call to the police department. Second, he called a friend of his for help. And third, he said, "I'll have to stay in apartment 19-3 for a while."  
  
Jungin didn't understand the words. She knew she was missing something in them. "Oh..."  
  
Kyungsoo sighed, kneading his forehead with his knuckles. "He's injured, badly. And it doesn't look like he is capable of anything by himself..." He closed his eyes and took a breath. "Jungin, I want to know that you'll stay inside even if I'm not here. Please, I have called a friend; he'll take care of you but... until he gets here..."  
  
Jungin wasn't sure how to process that. _I'm not a prisoner. I know I'm not!_ And yet. She remembered that fresh breeze when she'd stepped outside a few nights ago. But she also knew there was no one waiting for her out there. She briefly thought of her father, their tenuous relationship, and changed her mind. "I'll stay here."  
  
Kyungsoo looked like he was going to hug her. Instead, he just rubbed a hand on her hair.   
  
She watched silently as he reset all the pass codes, picked an extra change of clothes and then grabbed the first aid box. He stood considering the revolver, almost put it in his bag, but then stashed it in the knife drawer of the kitchen. Looking meaningfully at Jungin, he said, "In case you need it."  
  
And then he was going, pushing Monggu inside forcefully. He left without saying goodbye, he just said, "I'll keep dropping by."  
  
She stood in the empty home for a while. She wondered who Kyungsoo had called to come and look after her. Then she sat in front of the TV and watched the shows without really absorbing anything.  
  
Two hours later, nobody had come. Nothing had happened. Jjangu and Monggu had played with her for a while, but then they found a spot and went to sleep. She was alone now. She felt the loneliness deep inside. She hadn't realized how much she'd depended on D.O and his quiet presence until now.   
  
_Now..._ the suffocation that she'd been keeping at bay came out, overcoming her in an instant. Her breaths were heavy. She could feel telltale pressure of crude hands on her neck, jerking her, making it hard to breathe. _No, no, not again, please. Not again._ After all this time, this feeling, it still crippled her.  
  
 _Air, I need air._  
  
She scrambled to the door, heaving. Her trembling fingers put in one combination of password. It glowed red, a beeping alarm echoed in the apartment. She couldn't hear it through her heart pounding in her ears.  
  
Again, she tried another one of D.O's combination, and luckily, it turned green. She stumbled into the hallway. Clutching a stitch in her side, she walked towards the far door that led to the spacious terrace used communally by the residents of this floor.  
  
Seoul embraced her in comforting arms, and she fell on her knees. There were stars out; the wind ruffled her hair out of her messy bun. The crushing grip on her neck vanished, and the world seemed right again.  
  
It had taken her hours of numbing job, and tiring nights to keep this suffocation away. She was better, knowing that someone like D.O was just next door; ready to defend her at the moment's notice. But now that she was alone again with her thoughts, alone with the shadow of her father looming in her memories, alone with the scene of that night when she'd seen that man dying, and the silhouette of the man who'd killed him....  
  
She couldn't stay here. The high place away from people and noise, it still felt like a prison.  
  
 _I need to get away. Just for a while. I need to get out of this place!_


	7. Oil Spill ...

 

Baekhyun cursed loudly, "Fuck, fuck, fuck!"

 

He'd tripped intentionally, that much had been the plan. But he hadn't counted on the fracture to hurt so much. Okay, maybe he had. He'd been aiming for a leg, but his momentum had carried him and out of control, and now, he was nearly useless as a writer, and as a hired gun. 

 

He wanted to appeal to Kyungsoo's "police department" soul, he knew he could rely on his help. At the very least, he'd hoped that he could get Kyungsoo away from his apartment for a little while. A few hours even...

 

But when Kyungsoo just left him there, saying he would "get help" Baekhyun couldn't keep the strange hurt in his heart away. How could he be so stupid to believe that Kyungsoo would put him above his job? He wouldn't do it himself, so why had he automatically assumed another man of profession would? _Because I've been nothing but stupid ever since I saw his mug._ Stupid and helplessly attracted.

 

He was suffering worst than he imagined. And only for this job, for this man, he had allowed himself to get hurt. It was a chance ... and apparently, it had been in vain. For a few moments, he simply sat and cursed his luck. He hadn't lied about the deadline. And since he hadn't counted on actually injuring his dominant arm, it was now starting to smart his pride a little. Despite his side job, he had always managed to make his deadlines. Now it seemed he was likely to beat his own record.

 

With a painful sigh, he got his legs under him and found a spare t-shirt. Making a crude cast with it, looping it around his neck to support his arm, he sat in front of the computer, and started working with his left hand. It was pathetic and slow. He had trained himself to shoot using both of his hands, but now he regretted not training himself to type with his left hand too. He grit his teeth against the pain, and then started working with two fingers, making so many errors they were laughing at him. 

 

 _I wish I'd never taken this job,_ he thought. 

 

And then, he heard footsteps. He realized that he'd forgotten about his open door, and was struck speechless when Kyungsoo entered his home, carrying a duffle bag and a first aid box. Gaping, he simply watched as the other man sat down with him on the floor mattress, and then eyed his cast critically.

 

"This is a stupid way to heal a fracture," Kyungsoo said, and reached around Baekhyun's neck to undo the knot. Baekhyun's brain froze, and only one thought made it through. _He's close, so close._ He could smell the agent's manly smell. He could feel the heat radiating from his body. It was over within seconds, but he couldn't get his heart from pounding so fast. 

 

"What's... what's the clever way then?" he whispered, noticing how heavy his voice sounded.

 

Kyungsoo grabbed his arm, and drew him close. Their eyes met, held, and Baekhyun couldn't blink. He hadn't noticed how warm Kyungsoo's eyes were, especially in this light. Especially this close. And then Kyungsoo's head tilted, lips parting, so suggestive. Baekhyun leaned forward. Expectations and fear made his breath hitched.

 

For a split second he wondered what it would be like to cross this threshold, to finish this distance and just give in? What it would be like to just hold this man, to let him hold him? To just burn to the ground?

 

Kyungsoo's eyes flitted down, to Baekhyun's lips. And then he grabbed Baekhyun's arm, and twisted it. Baekhyun screamed at the world, eyes watering.

 

_Stupid. Stupid! This is a trap. He's on to me, he knows!_

 

But in the next moment, in which he was able to think beyond the pain clearly, he noticed that Kyungsoo was actually setting his arm to the right angle. That he'd done it quickly and efficiently, and the whole staring-at-his-lips-and-into-his-soul thing had been just a ploy to distract him. A ploy that, it seemed, worked beautifully. Panting, as he glared at the agent and at his own arm which was bring wrapped in a plaster gauze, he couldn't think of anything to say. No words existed in the world to explain what he was feeling. Angry, obviously. But he also felt relieved, pained, and astonished as to why the agent was here at all? 

 

 _Did getting myself injured work? Does this really mean that Jungin is alone in the apartment right now? Could I truly be so lucky?_ But he didn't let these thought play out any further because Kyungsoo was done. He picked up Baekhyun's shirt-cast and again looped it around his arm, and over baekhyun's head. 

 

"This," Kyungsoo said, as if the conversation had been going on without pause, "is the best way to mend it. But if you still feel like it's not enough, I can drive you to the closest clinic and-""

 

"No," Baekhyun interrupted. "I'm... thank you for this. But... you said you'll get help..."

 

At this the agent smirked a bit, and Baekhyun tried not to stare at the quirk of his mouth. "I did. He'll be here shortly. But, other than that, I'd like to help you myself. I mean, I feel responsible for what happened and-"

 

"No, no," Baekhyun interrupted again. "you didn't trip me, so there's no need for you to take blame. I'm just clumsy at times. I mean, a sane person would've taken one box at a time, but I was being lazy and I just.. forget it. It's not your fault."

 

"A sane person would've asked for help," Kyungsoo said softly. "I should've helped you out."

 

Baekhyun remained silent. The plan was working. For whatever crazy, unbelievable reason, it was really working. The guilty expression on Kyungsoo's face and the fact that he'd left his apartment (for a space of time, by the looks of it) and now it was up to him to fix this situation to work in his favor.

 

"Is he a doctor? Your friend?" Baekhyun asked instead.

 

"He is," Kyungsoo sighed and finally looked around the apartment. He did not appear amused. "He's also the person who helped me decorate the apartment. Looks like you need his help."

 

"Haha, I guess so. I really didn't have the chance to unpack and, I don't know how long I'll be here anyways." Baekhyun hadn't meant to say this part; but he was slightly touched at the shocked expression on Kyungsoo's face. So he hurried to do damage control. "I mean, you never know when this floor will get noisy, and I won't be able to write in peace."

 

Kyungsoo just nodded. He was still surveying the apartment, and whenever his eyes roamed over the few particular boxes that contained hidden weapons, he sweated. Trying to change the conversation, as well as keep Kyungsoo's attention to himself, he asked, "So what else you've got in your bag?"

 

At this Kyungsoo looked slightly different. Almost abashed. He shrugged. "Just a change of clothes. Since I feel responsible for the situation, and you look like you're not capable of doing anything, I figured I should... you know..." Another shrug followed this sentence.

 

"You figured you'd play nurse? Well, so far I'm not complaining." _Stop it. Stop flirting you'll scare him away!_ But at the same time, he couldn't help but think again about just a few moments ago. That look in Kyungsoo's eyes, he hadn't imagined it - he knew he hadn't!

 

"Nurse, caretaker, cook, basically anything you require me for."

 

Baekhyun licked his lips. It was painful, really, to remind himself that Kyungsoo didn't mean _anything_ literally. It wasn't the _anything_ Baekhyun was wondering about. So he proceeded with care. "In that case, I need you to make me a cup of coffee. And then, I need you to help me get this thing done!" He pointed at the computer.

 

Kyungsoo got up without a word, towards the kitchen and started looking through cabinets (mostly empty) for the coffee maker. Baekhyun observed, and once he was certain the agent wasn't looking, he grabbed his phone and typed in a hurried text message.

 

_The mama bear has left the den._

 

He sent it to Sehun. 

 

When he looked up, Kyungsoo was watching him. It took everything within him to not appear guilty. Instead he said, "I'm hoping they'll give me an extension. Horribly unprofessional of me, I know, but what else can I do?" He shrugged and winced when pain laced through his veins.

 

Kyungsoo shook his head, like he couldn't believe Baekhyun was so stupid as to hope fr anything like that in the first place, but went back to the coffee easily. Baekhyun didn't even let his relief shine through. He just wanted Sehun to finish the job.

 

 _And then what?_ A voice whispered in his head. _What are you going to do with this situation with the nice agent?_

 

He honestly didn't know.

.

.

 

Chanyeol rolled out of his car (which was starting to smell of cigarette, cheap beer and vomit nowadays) and started towards the bar he was frequenting these days. Apart from the secretary a few days ago, he hadn't gone looking for anyone to spend the nights with for some time now. At first, it had been easy to pretend that every blonde girl was her. But then, even through his hazed mind, he was able to realize that he was fooling himself. Badly, at that. So he just gave up on sleeping around entirely. 

 

As for his secretary, well; she'd been there to drive him home after another drunken soiree, and then had tumbled into bed with him because he was easily persuaded. Heck, he didn't even remember the night's events. If he was vindictive, he'd have fired her. But he _was_ vindictive - except these days, his mind and heart wasn't in the business anymore.

 

He'd lost a business deal recently, mainly because he was absent during the office hours, and mostly because he was avoiding his father's calls and summons for another round of berating. He'd been holed up in his personal villa, and he'd allowed himself to go to shit in a few weeks. He looked like shit too, but that was only an assumption since he hadn't seen a mirror in a while. His breath stank too, and he rarely found motivation for a shower these days.

 

The bar he wanted to go to was closed for some sort of personal reasons of the owner. Deprived of his drinks, he decided to be angry at the world, at B for making this situation so much worse. _She should be dead already. What's taking him so damn long?_ And so he got in his car and drove to B only to remember that he had no idea where the hitman was at all? He'd never really visited his home. There hadn't been any need for it.

 

So he called B and found that his phone was turned off. _Great._ So he decided to buy a six-pack of beer from a 24-Hour store and decided to drink himself to oblivion under the stars.

 

It was a pleasant night. The kind of night that makes you want to sleep outdoors, or sleep with your windows thrown wide open. He found a secluded patch of grass in the nearby park, and started drinking alone. Since he wasn't following any schedule he had no idea what time it was, though he guessed it must be late night. Surprising, at this hour, there were several people in the park, families who were doing BBQ and couples walking hand-in-hand. Some guys were playing tennis at the far end, and they'd gathered a sort of audience around them who cheered and laughed. An old lady with her grandchildren was sitting on a bench, trying to figure out how to take selfies.

 

It looked like an ordinary evening.

 

Every fucking where he looked, he saw happy faces, undisturbed lives. And he wanted to burn them all. More than anything, more than any other kind of trouble he had to face, he felt resentful towards his father. If anything, his father should be praising him for his actions. The flash drive that CEO Jung had stolen held a huge amount of sensitive data that could have destroyed his father's company and all of the other business endeavors. If he hadn't done what he'd done, his father would be on the streets now. But no, his perfect father craved perfection from him. He wanted Chanyeol to be outstanding in everything - mistakes were not an option.

 

But if it wasn't for this business with the witness, it would have been so easy. Perfect, like his father wanted. Chanyeol closed his eyes and threw his head back. A few deep breaths later, Jungin's face hadn't left the forefront of his mind. His days and nights were filled with her, and when he was drunk, he hallucinated her all around him, standing, watching, judging him. When he slept he dreamed of a thousand ways he was killing her. If only she was gone, then maybe he could clearly think of a way through this mess.

 

He sighed as he opened his eyes. He'd already drained three out of six bottles. Still, his head was floating with thoughts, with her face, with resentment. So he popped another one open, and took a sip. And then he saw her again. Another mirage, another hallucination. Good, that meant he was good and drunk now. Oblivion wasn't far.

 

He watched her. It was safe to watch her when she was just a figment of his own mind. He felt bold and shameless like this. A secret thrill. _I'm watching you closely, and you don't even know._ Like this, it wasn't a crime or betrayal. Like this, he didn't feel like he was associating with something that could potentially kill him too. He'd tried watching the video of her again, the one that B had sent. But the second time he watched it - he couldn't bear it. Her sadness and terror were raw and naked. And he felt exposed, ashamed. But the false-Jungin of his mind wasn't sad or terrified. She was blinding, and absolutely, crazily near him. He sometimes hallucinated that he could run his finger through that soft hair.

 

He blinked, and then he realized that his mind had reinvented her somehow. She seemed different - _aloof._ Her clothes were different. Not the faintly official garb of secretary, but plain clothes that looked like they must have belonged to a guy. Track pants, t-shit and sports hoodie, the hood on her head. Her hands were in the pockets of the hoodie, and she seemed to be clutching two sets of leashes that oddly connected to two adorable looking dogs. Upon closer inspection, he realized that her hair were no longer blonde, but dyed ash, black and purple. It was as if someone had taken the fresco Jungin of his head and turned her into a violently lonely piece of abstract art.

 

She looked untouchable. She looked _real._

 

He stood up fast. She was walking aimlessly, and soon would be close to his little corner. Sometimes she was looking at her own feet, moving one after another, and sometimes her head would move up, trying to find the stars in Seoul's sky. Chanyeol pinched his wrist hard, but she didn't disappear. She was close now. So close and so real.

 

Those aimless nights when he'd slept with faceless women... He'd been tempted to call B and somehow see Jungin just once. But each time he'd shrank away from the thought. If he was so possessed now by just knowing her face, what would he do when he actually met her in person?

 

And now here she was, in flesh. Alone and outside of the protection B had claimed was impenetrable. 

 

 _Why is she here?_ He thought, panicking. And then realized that she was the witness, and he was the murderer. She would recognize him. So he darted into the bush that was close behind him, and waited for her to pass. She walked to the corner he was sitting in moments ago, a few inches from the bush he hid behind. And then stopped. Before he could wonder why, he realized that he'd left his beer there in his hurry.

 

Jungin was looking at the beer bottles on the ground, a thoughtful expression on her face. And then, to his horror and awe, she sat down and grabbed the bottle he'd been drinking moments ago. She looked around, like she was trying to find the owner of the bottle, and then drank from it. A thrill went down Chanyeol's spine, when her soft lips touched the mouth of the bottle, the same place Chanyeol had been drinking from. And he decided, hallucination or reality, this was the moment he couldn't miss for the world.

.

.

 

It felt good to be outside. So good. She didn't have the luxury to visit parks and open areas because of her job before. And since she also avoided loneliness, she often found herself indulging in extra work at the office. 

 

But this, she wished she could have this every night. When the city was torn between awake and asleep, when the people around her didn't bother her, this was what she'd been missing all along. She wasn't afraid of the men, or the fact that she was a female, alone. Jjangu and Monggu appeared cute but she'd once set them lose on her father once; he still had the limp after years.

 

Despite the late hour, there were people about. She didn't mind the voices that intruded in on her thoughts, they provided a nice cover for her to hide, for her to not think about anything.

 

She wished she'd eaten something more before heading out, her stamina was too low it seemed and she was lethargic after just an hour of walk. She decided to find a quiet place and sit for a while. And then her shoe connected with something on the ground. A six-pack beer, three discarded bottles and one half empty. _How nice._ Someone must have left them here by accident, or maybe they'd come back to get them. She picked up the bottle and then looked around. _What could they possibly do that's worse than what I'm feeling right now?_ Nothing. So she drank, the bitter burn of liquid felt nice in her throat. Maybe that's what she'd needed all along, a nice drink. Agent D.O kept a stash of it in a nice little cabinet. He often popped open a bottle and drank, though he never got drunk. Jungin could take what she wanted from there, but it hadn't dawned on her before tonight.

 

She didn't want to get drunk. She hated drunks thanks to her father. Even if she was at the lowest moment of her life, she'd never sink to his level.

 

She released Jjangu and Monggu and then fell back on the grass, occasionally sipping on the bottle, spilling it too. 

 

And then Jjangu let out a growl. She sprang into a sitting position, and turned to see a man standing behind her. She hadn't even heard him. He was looking at her intently, like he was trying to intimidate her. 

 

"Oh," she said, realising. "This is your beer, isn't it? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to steal."

 

The man didn't answer. Instead, his head tilted, like he was trying to decipher her words. "You... don't..."

 

She blinked. He sounded hoarse, drunk. She sighed. She didn't want to deal with drunks right now. "Fine, I'll leave it here."

 

The man suddenly surged forward and said, "No... I'm not... why don't we share a drink?" There was _something_ about him, about his voice that rang a note of familiarity in Jungin. 

 

She looked him over. Tall, and underneath all that days old facial hair, he might be handsome. His eyes were wide and intense, and his hair were hidden underneath New York Yankees cap. He looked like he'd been wandering for days, and he smelled of sweat and cigarette, even from a respectful distance between them.

 

But above all, she noticed the dark circles and the obvious misery in his eyes, in the set of his shoulders. He was miserable like her, and they were both alone in the world it seemed. A drink couldn't hurt, and even if it did, what else she had to lose? _I lost everything worth saving long ago._

 

So she sat down. "If it's not too much trouble, I'll have a drink with you."

 

He hesitated for a moment. And then hurriedly took away the almost empty bottle from her hand. He took a new bottle out, screwed it open and offered it to her. Jungin raised an eyebrow - looked like underneath the wildness, a gentleman resided. He sat down too, but he kept his distance, and sat facing slightly away from her, like he was avoiding further eye contact.

 

They didn't speak. She wasn't in mood. 

 

After a few seconds of unease, Jjangu dared to get close to the man, and let him pet him. Monggu followed suit. Soon enough, the dogs were seated between the humans and looking relaxed.

 

Jungin finished her drink first. Getting up she dusted her butt and said, "Thanks for the drink. I needed that."

 

The man looked up. Underneath the cap, his eyes seemed to shine. She stared back. What was it about him that set her teeth on edge?

 

And he finally inclined his head. His voice was less raspy as he said, "No problem. I guess I'll see you in the park again?"

 

At first she didn't respond. _For a drink?_  she wanted to ask. And then his words echoed. 

 

_I'll see you in the park..._

_See you in ... the park_

**_"See you in hell, CEO-nim."_ **

****

Ice speard her spine, and she went still. She was good with faces and with voices. It was one of the skills she'd acquired as a necessity of being a secretary. And _this_ voice, these words, they were the ones she'd been having nightmares about. How hadn't she recognized it before?

 

She stepped back, trying not to panic. Now, now she could see past his rugged appearance. If he was clean-shaven and wearing an expensive suit... there was no mistaking it.

 

She took another step back, and he could see it. He could see it... _I need to run. Run!_ But her body was out of energy. Again, the fear from that night threatened to swallow her up. _This is what I get for escaping! I deserve whatever is coming._

 

"So... you really are the witness." The man said, standing up. He took something sweet out of his pockets and lured Jjangu and Monggu with it. "Here, boys. _Fetch!"_

 

Jungin stood paralyzed as her sweet, trusting dogs abandoned her, running after the treat that was thrown far. She couldn't move as the man grabbed her wrist and dragged her away, into the darkness.

 

Finally her breaths caught up and she opened her mouth to scream. There were people about, someone would save her. Her dogs would know her distress. _Anyone!_ But a hand, rough, warm and firm, clamped on her mouth. She whimpered as her soft cheeks dug into her jaw bones. 

 

_D.O, save me!_

 

Finally the tears came.


	8. Some Intrusions Can't Be Overlooked

 

Sehun didn't want to be doing any of the things that he was. Namely, hanging out the building again. He was on the rooftop of Heaven Heights and waiting for B's signal. _In and out. Kill the girl and get lost._ It sounded simple enough but Sehun had had more experience than he cared for, and he knew that nothing simple ever turned out to be easy.

 

He was ready to go inside the minute he received the message but it was worth the wait. Earlier, he'd been waiting on the roof, trying to navigate the area most likely missed by the cameras. As expected, he hadn't found much in the back area of the building and had climbed up with a grappling hook. After making sure that he was at Jungin's window, he had used a laser cutter to cut the glass and used rubber suckers to pop it open.

 

He knew something wasn't right as he slid into the room silently. The light was turned on even though it was bedtime in the normal world. The room definitely belonged to Jungin, he could recognize the clothes and cosmetics on the dressing. But it was empty. And locked from inside. More worryingly, the bath tub was overflowing and the sound of running water drowned his steps. One look around told him that the whole apartment was empty.

 

On the bed, there was an open notebook computer. He tapped a key, and sure enough, the window showed the surveillance cameras recording everything. The hallway outside was empty.

 

Sehun scratched his head. He was certain that B had said he would find, kill, and make the girl disappear easily enough. But for that he actually needed the girl to be here.

 

He had half the mind to call B again, when he heard the front door unlock. He looked at the screen and saw a man who could only be the backup that the agent had sent. Even by the standards, the replacement man was late. Sehun had waited one whole hour, then climbed the building in another half an hour, and then taken thirty more minutes trying to cut the glass silently. Which meant that he had been a fool. And now he was trapped and the replacement man would also realize that the girl wasn't here at all.

 

The man outside took his over night bag to the other bedroom, slowly walked into the kitchen to grab a drink, and finally came towards Jungin's door. Sehun cursed inwardly. He was thinking hard, and weighing the facts. Fact 1: Jungin wasn't here and this man didn't know it either. Yet. Fact 2: Jungin was more clever than anticipated and had ran off the minute B managed to distract the agent. Fact 3: Or this was a trap. The agent had Jungin stashed somewhere else and the replacement guy was just another hired man to deal with Sehun.

 

"Hey, Jungin-ssi?" The man outside knocked the door. "It's me, Minseok. We met earlier..."

 

Sehun sighed. _Think_. He was sure he hadn't disturbed the hinges to disarm the alarm, he'd cut the glass only. He was also sure that Jungin disappeared when he was waiting on the roof. Which meant, he needed to go after her, and make sure this replacement guy was none the wiser.

 

He smoothed his voice, made it as feminine as he could, and said, "Yeah... ?"

 

It seemed like the man would know something was wrong. But he said, "Are you in shower?"

 

Sehun remembered the running water. Jungin had covered all her basis, that bitch. "I am..."

 

"Okay I'll get out of your hair. Hey, have you seen a laptop here? D.O said I'll need it for security."

 

Sehun rubbed a hand through his face. "I won't ... let you spy on me..."

 

At this the man laughed. "Okay, good enough. I'll be in my room if you need anything, okay?"

 

"Thanks," Sehun said, wincing as his voice cracked slightly at the end.

 

Once the replacement man was in the other room, Sehun sighed again. _Fucking B. What do I do now? The witness is gone._

.

.

 

Kyungsoo was typing away on the computer of his neighbor, half listening as the story that was being dictated to him by Baekhyun. His mind was miles away. He was sure that by now Minseok was already in the apartment with Jungin, she was safe. He also knew that he had to do something about his neighbor, he couldn't babysit two people at the same time.

 

"... the stars were going out one by one, as they slowly slid into the embrace of eternal sleep... Full stop, and the end." Baekhyun finished with a glow in his eyes.

 

Kyungsoo sighed deeply, and realized something. "Wait, did you just kill the main couple?"

 

Baekhyun blinked at him. And then his whole face cracked as laughter hit him. With his injured arm, he could still laugh hard and uncontrollably. Kyungsoo was impressed with his ability to find humor in such small things. But at the same time, he'd been unable to get Baekhyun's proximity out of his head. Jungin and Baekhyun... The entirity of his thought process explained in just two words.

 

"Oh... I forgot you haven't actually started this series yet," Baekhyun said, trying to get himself under control. "That's sort of like the premise of this series. Different people, different worlds and different endings."

 

Kyungsoo decided he was going to skip this one. He'd spent the last three hours hearing about how the hero and heroin going through extremely painful torture, mental hysteria and then finally meeting each other again only to die together. It was too painful.

 

His face must have shown his disgust because Baekhyun said, "Honestly, this is the first time I'm ending it like this. They're going to love it and hate it, but I already have big plans for the next installment. Heck, I'm actually basing the hero after you."

 

Kyungsoo frowned. "Me? What for?" He was certain there wasn't anything hero worthy about him currently. It would have made sense if Baekhyun had seen him as a detective, but just now he was an ordinary man.

 

"Are you kidding me? You're like the perfect inspiration!" Baekhyun exclaimed, his voice getting higher as his excitement rose. "A lonely man in a dark tower, mysterious and unreachable... When suddenly his life is shattered and he has to get over his fears and face the world, only to become the greatest hero and saviour of his time."

 

Now Kyungsoo was smiling. He also felt embarrassed. Was he dark and mysterious? Did Baekhyun really feel that way about him? "I'm looking forward to it."

 

Baekhyun flopped backwards. "God, what's the time? I need to email this shit."

 

While Baekhyun tried to email it using a finger of his good hand, Kyungsoo looked around the apartment again. Even by regular standards, there were too many books and too many boxes. He was half tempted to start unpacking and sorting things. But he also knew that he needed to get some sleep and then check up on Jungin and Minseok.

 

He was still figuring it out when Baekhyun's phone started ringing. Whoever it was, Baekhyun had a very strange, blank face when he took the call.

 

"Hello?"

.

.

 

 _Mr. Park, I'm almost done with the thing,_ is what Baekhyun would have said if he was alone. But he wasn't alone. He was sweating because why did Mr. Park call when Kyungsoo was in front of him? And he was worried because he had yet to get a positive answer from Sehun. Just how long it took to kill a girl anyway?

 

"Hello?" Baekhyun said and decided to pretend like it was his publisher.

 

"B? Are you alone?" There was something different about his voice, something _awake._

 

"No, but I finished the first draft..."

 

"I transferred extra digits to your account and you are free to take other clients for now."

 

Baekhyun frowned. "I don't..."

 

"I'm taking the job from you. Everything has been sorted, no thanks to you. But looks like we can make do without killing the witness."

 

Baekhyun hoped to God Code Name: D.O couldn't hear it. They were sitting close enough for that to be possible. "Yeah... I did... I killed the couple in the last scene." What is he saying? I'm off the job. But I finally found a way...

 

"B, I don't care what you're doing, but you are free to forget about the witness, okay? And if my old man calls you for another job, be a pal and refuse. Please. I'm sure you'll be convinced once you check the account. I sent you a pretty good consolation prize."

 

The line went dead.

 

Baekhyun tried not to scream. _I was so close. I actually broke my arm for this and now..._ He didn't know what he was supposed to do. For the first time in his damn life, he was without any plan or motivation. It would have helped if his book was there to keep him churning but...

 

He looked up and caught the agent looking at him in concern. Those wide, round eyes... Baekhyun tried not to think of what this meant for the two of them. Now that the agent and the girl were no longer his targets, could he try to...? No, he didn't want to entertain the thought. They might not be his targets anymore, but the agent was still on a mission to protect the witness. Which meant that anything Baekhyun could hope for was probably already out of the question.

 

Instead he slowly lowered the phone and tried to explain himself. "They are saying that I have to change it up... The ending..."

 

Kyungsoo looked sympathetic. "I'm sorry... can I help you with it?"

 

Baekhyun shook his head and smiled. For whatever it was worth, this man really was a nice person who was here to help him. _At least now I don't have to worry about killing him._ "No, it okay. You've already done so much. And... is that the time already? Sorry, you must be tired."

 

The agent stretched, arms going up and around his head as his joints popped, and his shirt rode up. Baekhyun could see a patch of skin, and he was sure he would like the rest of the agent's body too.

 

"Where am I sleeping?" Kyungsoo asked, his voice was heavy with exhaustion.

 

Baekhyun swallowed. He didn't want to be attracted to this guy but damn, why did he sound so sexy? "There's a futon and an extra mat in the bedroom. You can sleep there if you like... although... I don't want to keep you from the comfort of your own bed." _The mission is over. Go home now._

That made the agent frown and pointed to Baekhyun's sling. "I'll stay here to make sure that you don't dislocate that in your sleep. And then in the morning, I'll take you to the clinic. I can get back to my own home and its comforts after that."

 

Baekhyun sighed. How could he refuse? The offer was too strong and his own conflicted emotions after the sudden cancellation didn't help him either. And the simple thought they were going to sleep under the same roof was getting to him in all the bad, but right ways. This attraction wasn't healthy. It had cost him his arm (he was hoping he hadn't damaged it permanently). And it was making him rash, which in his profession, wasn't a wise thing to do.

 

If it wasn't for the slight but definite interest the agent also showed in him, he would have left such notions far behind. Knowing that at some level, D.O wanted him too was too good of an opportunity to pass.

 

He expected D.O to just sleep in the other room, but when the agent dragged the mat and extra blanket outside, Baekhyun blinked rapidly. He wanted to ask but it felt too rude to the person who was going anywhere extra mile for his sake.

 

"I should stay here in case you have some trouble at night. Let's just make it a slumber party."

 

Baekhyun smiled brightly. "Great idea. I've never had a slumber party before." Strange enough, it was true. He was weird from the time of birth and then the events of his childhood rendered him friendless for the most part. He had associates, business partners - not friends. If he had to use that term, Sehun was probably the only person who came close enough to a friend.

 

Kyungsoo looked like he was worried about that information. "Never?"

 

Baekhyun coughed slightly, as the agent set the mat next to his make-shift bed in the living room. "Well... I preferred to stay by myself and read. After that I was too busy writing and searching for a company to publish me to socialize. And now, I'm even more busy than I could imagine." _Except for when I'm not doing my other job._

 

Kyungsoo settled in the mat, plopping an elbow on the pillow and pulling the blanket over himself. He was facing Baekhyun, a distance of just a few books separating their beds.

 

Baekhyun had to force himself to not stare. Kyungsoo was obviously sleepy and yet he seemed to be paying attention to Baekhyun's words and his arm. He was too vulnerable like this, and nothing at all like the agent Baekhyun had come to expect. He was too approachable.

 

"We should sleep," mumbled Kyungsoo, his voice was heavy with tiredness.

 

Baekhyun nodded and picked up the central remote control with his good hand. He turned off the lights, leaving just a single lamp on near him. He knew before he even closed his eyes that Kyungsoo was fast asleep.

 

 _How easy it would be to kill him, if I still had the mission._ Baekhyun thought with some hesitation. He realized that the thought of killing the agent actually disturbed him now. He was sure it would be an affair that he wouldn't walk away from unscathed, physically or emotionally. And yet, it was so tempting to just reach his hand across the space that separated them and touch that mouth again.

 

He snuggled into himself, closing his eyes. He couldn't trust his thoughts, now that the man next to him wasn't a target anymore. He was in even more dangerous situation than ever now. This time, he was scared for his heart.

.

.

 

Sehun escaped the apartment the same way he came, trying to fix the glass back with some nifty glue gun. The minute someone saw it, they'd know something had happened to it. There was no clean way of doing this, but it was worth the risk if he could help B and in turn get the record straight.

 

He needed a new identity too much to care anymore. The only thing that kept him going was the life that awaited him. With Yixing.

 

Just the thought of him had him in a better mood. He didn't want to go to B just then, knowing that the agent was still there. And he also couldn't get a message across the phone because apparently it was busy.

 

By the time he scaled down the wall and returned to his car, he had forgotten about the time and the lateness of the hour. Yixing must be waiting for him. Worrying about what kept him away. Ever since they started living together, trying to lie about himself had become harder.

 

Once B gave him what he wanted, everything would be fine.

 

He sped up his car. In his haste to get home, he didn't notice that a man was trying to walk an unwilling girl (who looked a lot like Jungin, his target) to his car, before driving off, almost cutting over into Sehun's path.

 

He hissed. "Seriously, drivers these day..." He threw a nasty glance in the side mirrors, watching the taillights disappear, and then he didn't think about nasty stuff at all.

.

.

 

Jungin wanted to scream at the cars passing by as the man pushed her towards a sleak, silver car and opened the passenger side door for her.

 

She sat down, and watched as the man ran around and got into the driver's seat. He revved up the engine and drove out, almost running into another car in his hurry to get into the required lane.

 

Jungin wasn't an expert, but her job as a secretary also required driving for her boss, time to time. She knew some areas in Seoul easily enough, but the direction that this man was taking didn't make sense. She knew only one thing. Heaven Heights was left far behind them by now.

 

She tried not to move. He was driving fast, but not as carelessly as before. She knew for a fact that he was drunk, but the amount of control he now exuded made her nervous.

 

 _Was he aware of my whereabouts?_ That was what kept bugging her. Despite all the careful planning and security, this guy happened to be at the closest park. Jungin cursed herself over and over for betraying D.O and being so bitchy because of a panic attack. She also mourned the loss of her dogs, but they were better off away from this man anyway.

 

They were silent, but occasionally the man would turn to stare at her intensely. Jungin didn't meet his eyes, and kept staring at the road. If she knew where she was, maybe, she could run again.

 

As if he'd heard that particular train of thought, the man said, "Close your eyes."

 

Jungin turned at him, wide-eyed. _No, please._

"Do it willingly, or I'll close them for you." His voice was exactly what it had been that night.

 

Jungin started shivering, suddenly sure that she wouldn't escape alive. There was no scenario where she could survive at all. Not now that this man had entered the frame.

 

He sighed, long and regretful. His hand snapped towards her. Jungin felt him grab her nape and then her head connected to the dashboard, hard. Pain was the first emotion, and then her eyes fell close.

.

.

 

Chanyeol drove to the ferry, and waited for the sunrise. He had to catch the first ferry and then get himself and Jungin to the only safe place he knew and owned in an island near Seoul.

 

He was trying not to look beside him at the sleeping girl. She was too good to be true. Too close to all of his waking and sleeping dreams. He was losing his head, but it didn't stop him at all.

 

Once he had stopped driving, he used his mobile account to transfer a hefty amount in B's account, and then he called the man. He knew that B would be irritated and annoyed by the sudden cancellation. Especially after the time and planning he put behind this one. But if Chanyeol was thinking at all, he would have stopped to consider all the possibilities.

 

After cancelling, he called his secretary and told her to get the manager to take care of business. He also said that nothing of this should be reported to his father. He then called his bodyguard and told him to keep an eye out for anyone in his father's circle if they decided to come after him.

 

Despite every sort of trust he put in his staff, he hadn't trusted anyone with the address of his home. Except maybe his driver. But he knew the driver wouldn't squeak. Chanyeol was keeping the driver's daughter alive in an ICU and handling the whole medical bills. The minute his driver betrayed him, was the minute his daughter would stop breathing through the pipe.

 

Once everything was taken care of, he wondered exactly what had prompted him to kidnap the woman beside him. It was enough to see her in reality. He could have let her leave, go back to where B had his traps ready. He could've called B and then gotten rid of the problem once and for all.

 

But something tore him up once she decided to leave. The mere idea that she wouldn't be next to him in a few moments was enough to scare him crazy. And then she recognized him and backed away like he was about to kill her. That look of fear and hatred... Chanyeol had seen it so many times from so many people but it always made him braver and fiercer. Always urged him to ruin more lives just to make profits for his father's empire.

 

But that look on Jungin's face didn't evoke anything like that. He felt small and insignificant. And he wanted to change the look into something else, but didn't know how.

 

The next thing he knew, he was chasing away her dogs and grabbing at her. The touch of his hands on her... The confirmation that she was, at last, _real._ He was gone after that. Walking and acting like a man possessed.

 

He wanted to blame it all on the liquor. That would be so easy. But he knew why he had done it. Because he was _selfish._ Now that he had _seen_ her, he wanted to keep her close. Wanted to keep watching her for an eternity.

 

Even now, his eyes were on her. Head slumped on a side, hair lose under the hood she still had over her head. Even in this state, she was magnificent.

 

_And I'm the only man who sees her._

 

The sun rose over the horizon of the yellow sea, and Chanyeol spotted the first ferry floating towards the dock for loading the cargo, vehicles and everything that was going off the main land. He checked that Jungin was still unconscious and went to get the tickets.

 

Once he had driven into the ferry and stopped the car in the available spot, he tried to act as normal as possible. The traders and fishermen walked around his car, watching Jungin sleeping.

 

Chanyeol eased Jungin back, like she was only slumbering. He also took off his jacket and draped it over her. He hoped that nobody would think about them as anything other than friends or acquaintances. He knew that once it was discovered that Jungin didn't come back, the agent in charge of her would start searching for her. There might be people who would remember seeing her. He just hoped that the investigation wouldn't get out as far as the island and remained in the Seoul area only.

 

The ferry took an hour. It made its first stop at another island before turning to another smaller one. Chanyeol seemed to be the only one getting off there this early in the morning. He was slightly happy that most of the population had gotten off at the previous stop, which meant less eyewitnesses.

 

He carefully drove off the ferry and onto the deck that led to a road. It wasn't even a perfect road, just many pebbles deposited to make it resistant to the water that climbed up the dock sometimes.

 

He didn't look back as the ferry slowly receded to the background in the morning mist. He sped ahead, trying to reach his destination before Jungin had a chance to wake up.

 

He owned a sprawling farm house here, that he'd named _The Eve Residence._ Whenever he felt like escaping work or his father, he came here to get lost. He'd been here twice already to spend nights that were seriously tough because of the very woman beside him.

 

The island mostly consisted of trees bent with the high pressure sea air and fields of tall grass and rice crops. It had roughly thirteen farm houses and some handful of other properties. The rest was uninhabited. There was no hospitals or malls. Just a small convenience store that reminded Chanyeol of olden times.

 

He reached his house, entered the password in a keypad beside the gate and then drove in. The driveway curled around a stretch of lawn, a fountain and some bird pens. He entered another set of passwords before driving into the garage built into the left face of the house.

 

He got out as the garage door slid shut behind his car. Going inside through the connecting door, he apprehended Mister and Missus Wong, the couple who worked for him. They were the housekeepers in his absence. They also had a twelve year old daughter, who was possibly going to get ready for school in another hour, when the next ferry would arrive.

 

"Master Chanyeol!" said Mrs. Wong. She had flour on her hands, which meant that she was halfway through making the breakfast already. "Is everything okay? You're back early."

 

He didn't know if he could be so rude, but he was their employer so he didn't care. "Mrs. Wong. Once you've had breakfast, please pack up your stuff and get off the island in the ferry. I need this residence to myself for an undecided period of time."

 

The housekeeper frowned, though she didn't look offended. "Okay Master Chanyeol. We'll do as told. But you look rather famished, won't you join us for the breakfast?"

 

"Leave me a little," he said, smiling at her kindness. "And I hope the pantry is full?"

 

"There are some ingredients that are required," said Mr. Wong, coming out of the kitchen beside his wife. "But I'll try to get them by next week, if you plan to stay longer."

 

"Thank you for everything," he said, finally feeling like something was going exactly as he wanted to. "And whatever you do, don't go into the garage today."

 

If his request bothered them, they didn't show it. Much like his driver, the Wong couple was fully supported by him financially, whether they were here or off the island. He knew they wouldn't question or betray him.

 

It took them another hour to fully pack and leave. Mr Wong had his truck parked outside the gate, and the family loaded everything on it before leaving. Chanyeol watched them go, waving back as the little girl waved at him from the backseat. Once alone, he made a round of the ground, making sure that everything was secure, and then he went back to the garage again.

 

Jungin was still unconscious. It had been hours, and now he finally felt worried. If she didn't wake up...?

 

Setting his worry aside, he got to work. He needed to get Jungin inside the house and get her settled before she woke up. And then, he needed to figure out exactly what the fuck he was doing?

 


	9. Something Like Pain

 

Kyungsoo woke up first and realized that during the night, he seemed to have gravitated towards Baekhyun slightly. Baekhyun as well seemed to be curling towards him, his arm flopped over his side awkwardly in an attempt to reduce the pain.

 

He was sure that this was the first time he'd woken up next to someone like this. Mostly he didn't prefer to get close to anyone for more than a few hours, romantically. And he had never had a chance to sleep with any of his friends like this either. He was reminded of what Baekhyun had said, that he didn't have been to a slumber party before. It was also true for him, or if he had been to one as a child, he didn't remember.

 

Speaking of his neighbor, he was doing that thing in his sleep with his lips that made him look entirely beautiful. There was a limit to how perfect a man could be, but the more he saw Baekhyun, the more obvious it became that Baekhyun had crossed that limit already. This attraction of his, Kyungsoo knew, wouldn't benefit him at all. He needed to distance himself from this man, think of any other way to help instead.

 

Since he'd already helped him with completion of the novel, Kyungsoo decided he'd help him one last time and then mind his own business.

 

He sent a text to Minseok, hoping that he was awake and having breakfast with Jungin. Then he reached out to Baekhyun and shook him slightly, not disturbing the injury. It was apparent that he was a deep sleeper, and he didn't move.

 

"Baekhyun-ssi? It's morning already," Kyungsoo said, shaking him some more. "Time to wake up."

 

Baekhyun's eyes fluttered open, slowly. He seemed rather disorientated but the sharpness returned to his eyes once he saw Kyungsoo.

 

There was another one of those moments which kept happening a lot with the two of them as they stared into each other's eyes, unblinking. Kyungsoo looked away first. He reminded himself of what he'd decided.

 

"We should have breakfast and then I'll take you to the clinic," he said, getting out of the mat and rolling it up. He went into Baekhyun's room and returned it to the place where he'd gotten it from last night.

 

When he came back out he realized that Baekhyun was already padding towards the kitchen, looking for something worth eating. By the way his mouth twisted into a pout, it was obvious there wasn't anything. He looked over at Kyungsoo apologetically. "I feel terrible right now. You are my guest and I don't even have bread."

 

Kyungsoo shrugged with a smile. "We can grab something on our way to the clinic then."

 

Baekhyun looked nervous. "I don't need clinic. I'm sure I'll be fine in a few days."

 

"No, you won't," Kyungsoo said firmly, getting himself close to Baekhyun to get his point across. "What if your arm sets the wrong way and you're never able to work with it again? I won't be here to help you forever, you know." _Can't you see that? We're too different. You're too pure and honest and I'm lying to your face._

 

Baekhyun looked at him with the same intensity. Like he _understood_ what Kyungsoo was trying to say. And then he whispered, _"I wish you would…"_ A moment later his eyes went wide. He clapped a hand on his mouth. "Did I just say that out loud?"

 

Kyungsoo stared, still shaken at what he'd heard. He'd figured out last night that the attraction they felt was mutual, and now Baekhyun had confirmed it. That still didn't make any of this okay. Which is why, Kyungsoo chose to ignore it. "Said what…? I didn't catch it."

 

Baekhyun looked relieved. "Oh nothing I was just… I'll go change into something else." He side stepped Kyungsoo and made a beeline to his bedroom, closing the door after himself.

 

Once alone, Kyungsoo allowed himself to smile. If it wasn't for his job and Jungin, he'd have already taken that man into his arms and kissed him. He was just too cute sometimes.

.

.

 

Baekhyun couldn't get this strange feeling of guilt off his chest. He'd always found it hard to reconcile his personality as a writer with his personality as a killer, but he'd managed to keep both sides in their individual boxes. With Kyungsoo, it was harder to concentrate. He'd been his enemy first, but after Mr. Park's cancellation, he was just an innocent individual who was trying to be nice to Baekhyun as a person, a neighbor.

 

He was too close to each of Baekhyun's personality and thus the lines were blurring. He couldn't help but feel dirty, like he was taking advantage. He was still lying, even if he wasn't supposed to kill Jungin anymore. And that felt like a crime.

 

They were in Kyungsoo's car, ordinary and old, like it had seen many years. Something creaked and rattled as they drove to the clinic close to their building.

 

Through it all, Kyungsoo was there beside him. Getting him in, filling his form, sitting with him as they ran an x-ray. He stood close to him when  he got his arm properly plastered, and held his hand when pain was too much. He was with him as they purchased the medicines. When he felt slightly dizzy with hunger on their way to the car, Kyungsoo's hands caught him, braced him firmly.

 

Pressed closed to his side, Baekhyun couldn't keep his eyes off Kyungsoo. He was blinding in sunlight. The feeling of guilt was too much to bear, that he ended up asking, "Why are you being so nice? You don't know what sort of person I am we've just met."

 

At this Kyungsoo frowned slightly. "I wasn't nice the first time we met. But I'm trying to undo my mistake from that time. Why are you shocked by this? I'm only helping you out. Sometimes, people are kind without any reason."

 

Baekhyun couldn't breathe. Kyungsoo was so close, so perfect. For the first time he felt like he could understand why Sehun had decided to change himself, to get away from this double life. The thought of Sehun snapped him out of his misery. He hadn't told him that Mr. Park had cancelled. _What if he'd already killed Jungin?_

 

"We need to get home. I just remembered something important that I must tell my publisher."

 

His freak out was uncalled for and Kyungsoo noticed. "Not before we get something to eat. You're obviously starving."

 

Baekhyun let himself be dragged into the car. Kyungsoo drove to the nearest breakfast joint, got their food for take out, and hurried home. _Home. Why did I start thinking of that apartment as home. I've never had one, all my life._

 

But that didn't matter now. He was going to get himself out of these confused emotions and find his own. Just because his arm was broken, he couldn't change himself completely. His life had turned him into this man with two faces. It wasn't something he could easily change. Not when he depended on it so much.

 

Since the mission was cancelled, he had to get away from this agent. It would be easy if Kyungsoo wasn't so kind underneath all that hard exterior. But the more he got to know him, the more it became clear that he was a good man who didn't deserve to die. He especially didn't deserve a lie like Byun Baekhyun in his life.

 

"Are you okay? You seem so far away." Kyungsoo's voice, concerned, kind, made him lose his breath once again.

 

"It's just that I feel pathetic," he said, half truth. "I should be out there, explaining manuscript to the publisher but I'm scared he'd abandon me if he saw me like this."

 

Kyungsoo didn't say anything, but his hands tighten on the steering wheel. Then: "Don't fret. I'm sure everything will be okay. The doctor said it wasn't bad, so you have hope."

 

Baekhyun nodded. _If I don't look at him, don't meet his eyes, I think I can survive._ But as they drove into the garage and took the elevator up, just the two of them alone, Baekhyun realized that it was even more impossible than breathing.

 

"I'll get back to my apartment then," Kyungsoo said, stopping outside 19-1. He held out Baekhyun's medicine and food to him.

 

Baekhyun took it. And his eyes found themselves meeting Kyungsoo's. He knew he was doomed already. He could run away, never see him again. But that wouldn't make him stop feeling whatever it was that he felt now.

 

"Goodbye then," he said, trying to be neutral. "I'll enjoy the food. Thanks again."

 

"Anytime," Kyungsoo replied, though it didn't reach his eyes.

.

.

 

Kyungsoo was sad and disappointed as he watched the other man walk away from him. Even though his head told him, _This is for the best._

He was certain that somewhere along the line today as they went out, Baekhyun had also realized how stupid they were being and decided to distance himself. That bit about wanting to call his publisher was also a lie, plain and simple, to cut their excursion short.

 

He had to get back to his old way of life, back to Jungin and his job. The apartment was silent as he went inside. Minseok was still in bed probably, but Jungin always woke up early. Her absence in the kitchen, or in front of her favorite seat was strange enough, but he also couldn't hear her dogs. By now, at the sound of the door, they would have already gotten out and tackled him with their tongues. Which meant that she was asleep too, and so were the dogs. _Maybe they had a late night._

He drank some water from the kitchen tap, put some coffee on and started scrambling the eggs in a bowl for breakfast. As his hands moved, he called aloud, "It's 8:36! Get up everyone! I won't make breakfast again!"

 

He had the first batch of eggs ready in a short while, and the coffee machine chimed too. He called again, "I'm not kidding, you guys!"

 

"Seriously man," Minseok said, walking out of Kyungsoo's bedroom barefoot, rubbing his eyes. "You're so loud when it's not needed. The whole Korea heard you, you ass."

 

Kyungsoo didn't acknowledge this and handed Minseok a cup of coffee. He then went to Jungin's door and rapped it sharply with his knuckles. "Jungin-ssi?"

 

No answer.

 

In the moment that followed, Kyungsoo had a weird but firm realization that Kim Jungin wasn't behind this door. He rushed to his bedroom, opened a drawer and found the house keys. He wouldn't dare disturb her privacy, but enough evidence pointed to the direction of his fears already.

 

He opened the lock and pushed the door open. The empty bed and room was the first thing he saw. And then he saw the square shape in the window where the glass had been cut and replaced, crudely at that. The confirmation that Jungin wasn't here... it still didn't register.

 

"She was here, I swear!" This was Minseok who had came up behind him to investigate. "She was in the shower and... Shit, I knew her voice was off."

 

"What did she say?" Kyungsoo asked, moving towards the laptop on the bed. It was almost out of charge, but enough for him to open the folder and the recording from last night.

 

While Minseok repeated the whole conversation, Kyungsoo found the data on the camera inside Jungin's room. It was deleted.

 

He then switched to another folder, this one was the camera installed right outside Jungin's bathroom door. It was a hidden camera, and whoever deleted the file (he tried very hard not to think that it could be Jungin) wouldn't have noticed it there. As expected, the recording from last night was still there.

 

He clicked it and put it on fast forward. He saw Jungin first, making her compulsory round before bed, and then saw nothing for several hours. Until a male figure entered the screen. He was tall, slender, clad from head to toe in black. The cap on his head hid his face, showing just a hint of his neck and sharp jawline. The man checked inside the bedroom, like he was looking for something or someone, and then disappeared off the screen.

 

Kyungsoo's head was reeling. He checked the other cameras too, and found the man showing up in the one installed at the back end of the building. He just walked, still keeping his head low, to the building, and then away from the building after several hours. In both events he was carrying a bag, and a coil of rope hanging on his left shoulder.

 

This explained the glass in the window. But it also told him one important factor. This man had came looking for Jungin, but hadn't found her. He returned empty handed. Which meant that after brushing her teeth, she hadn't gone to bed.

 

He opened the recording of the living room, and sure enough, there she was after he left. Watching T.V. with Jjangu and Monggu. But after a while, she started acting strange. Kyungsoo paused the video and played it again at normal speed, watching her closely. She was doubled over as she stumbled on her feet, her whole body was shaking. Kyungsoo knew a panic attack when he saw one, and Jungin seemed to be having the worst kind. He saw her stumble to the window first, groping the glass like she wanted to get it open, to breathe. But then she ran-stumbled towards the door, entered the wrong password, then the right one. She ran all the way to the end of the hallway and outside in the balcony.

 

"She must be feeling like hell," Minseok said quietly, standing behind him as he also watched the screen.

 

Kyungsoo had to agree. He felt guilty for leaving her like that, when she probably needed him. He also knew that Jungin hadn't meant to run away, but only needed some air.

 

But that wasn't the end. Ten minutes later, Jungin came back inside. She looked slightly better, level headed, but her movements betrayed her fragile state. She also seemed to be holding her neck at intervals, as if she was trying to release some sort of invisible choke-hold.

 

She came back in, took the laptop in her room and opened the taps in the bathroom. She placed the laptop on her bed, and then searched through her drawers for pen and paper. She wrote something, then shook her head. She crumpled the paper in her fist and threw it under the bed. Then she pushed the lock button on the door and got out. Putting her dogs on a leash, she pulled on one of Kyungsoo's hoodies, and walked out of the apartment, locking the door with the password.

 

Kyungsoo followed her as far as his electronic eyes saw. Outside the main lobby, towards the drive way, and then beyond his reach, her dogs merrily wagging tails in front of her.

 

Minseok crawled underneath the bed and came out clutching the note. It said: _I'll be back... I need to stop this silence... this is... I'm sorry D.O... I'll be back soon..._

 

He didn't know why he was feeling like he should have known, but the way Jungin broke down in his absence made him feel like it was _his_ fault. He should have asked Jongdae for complete details regarding her, medical and psychological history included. He shouldn't have left her at all. _Heck, if I had helped Baekhyun's with those boxes he wouldn't have gotten injured and I wouldn't have to leave Jungin._ Everything felt like a mistake made by him alone.

 

He ordered Minseok to stay put and keep the eye on surveillance. Taking the elevator, he went out through the lobby to the stretch of garden and driveway reserved for Heaven Heights' residents. Jungin said she'd be back, so he had to wait for her. According to the timestamp shown in the footage, it's been eight hours since she left. He was going to wait for a little more, and if it looked like she wasn't coming, he was going to have to report about his (first) failure to Jongdae.

 

Hours passed as he sat in the grass, waiting for her. He texted Jongdae and asked for a complete medical history of Jungin in the meanwhile. When it was apparent that she wasn't coming back, Kyungsoo decided that he was, in fact, an incompetent prick.

 

He went upstairs, had a quick shower, and then decided to video call Jongdae to report. He wasn't expecting things to get even more out of hand when the first thing Jongdae said after picking the call was: "We've got the green light on the trial. It's been set for the day after tomorrow, get your witness ready to appear, okay. Oh, and I emailed the file you asked for. So what's up?"

 

Kyungsoo blinked at the screen. Jongdae was reclining on his seat, looking relaxed that one of his cases was finally underway. He hated breaking his boss's confidence, but he had no choice.

 

"Jongdae... sir, I'm afraid to inform you that Kim Jungin is no longer with me."

 

Jongdae frowned slightly. He pulled the phone close so that the whole screen was just his confused, disbelieving face. "I didn't catch that. Say it again."

 

Kyungsoo said, "Jungin is missing. She escaped."

 

"And where were you when that happened?"

 

 _Taking care of the neighbor._ That's he couldn't say. "I was away for a few hours."

 

"So you neglected your duty. And she somehow figured out your security system and escaped?"

 

"Yes, sir." Kyungsoo had felt this way before. This crushing embarrassment, this shame in front of his boss. Back when he had killed someone innocent, thus losing his detective badge. He couldn't believe that he had failed his boss again, so horribly.

 

Jongdae's face also depicted utmost regret and disappointment. "Agent D.O, you are hereby off this case. Whatever information and data you have, hand it over to the detective's office by this evening."

 

The screen went blank as Jongdae disconnected the call. Kyungsoo felt the walls closing in around him. How was it possible to sully his record twice?

 

Behind him, Minseok was dressed and ready to leave. It looked like he'd overheard the last part of the conversation. His eyes pitied Kyungsoo. Giving him a hug, he said, "You can't keep everyone safe. You can't keep the whole world happy. The only thing you can do, is to listen to your heart."

 

Kyungsoo wanted to laugh at such ridiculous statement. But it also made him realize something about his friend and senior. "You didn't leave the police force just because you wanted to peruse fashion, did you? Something else happened."

 

At this Minseok smiled sadly. "Let's just say, we all make mistakes we wish we could wash away, but it isn't easy to do so. I'm still trying to wash the red stains I bear on my soul."

 

This was the first time he'd seen Minseok so serious and grave. He pulled him into another hug, and bid him farewell.

 

He spent the rest of his afternoon taking down the cameras and saving all the data from surveillance into flash disks. Then he drove to the station. The whispers and jeers followed him all the way through to Jongdae's office, but he kept his head high. He wasn't going to cower. He was going to own up to his mistakes and do better the next time. That is, if he didn't get fired.

 

Jongdae was stern, and didn't even scold him. It felt worse. Once Kyungsoo had relayed everything, he simply said, "I'll report to the upper office and then let you know their decision. In the meantime, you can continue living in your current quarters. If it's true that Jungin left before the intruder came, it's possible that he might return to take care of unfinished business. Keep an eye out until then. Take a good, long rest."

 

Kyungsoo nodded, gave his boss the customary salute and got up to leave. But Minseok's cryptic remake still bothered him. "Sir... Why did Minseok sunbae resign?"

 

Jongdae's face transformed into the one of pain. At first it looked like he was going to yell at him, but then he said, "Because I couldn't bear to look at his face anymore. Did you want to ask anything else?"

 

"No, nothing. Good bye."

 

It wasn't until he was outside in his car that he remembered, Minseok had a partner who died in one of the cases. It was Joonmyun, none other than Jongdae's husband-to-be. He hadn't even tried to make a connection between the three of them before, but now it seemed obvious. But he couldn't poke into someone else's business, not when he had his own mess to deal with.

 

 


	10. From One Heavenly Prison to Another

  
 

Kyungsoo had just stopped looking at the camera feed of the last two weeks. He'd been able to find the whole day missing, which was replaced by the recording of the previous day. As much as it hurt him to admit, he knew now that it must have been Jungin. He was still wallowing when Jongdae called him.

 

"You need to be here in the office tomorrow at seven sharp," Jongdae said crisply and then disconnected the call.

 

Kyungsoo was sure that this icy treatment will last for a while. He went out to the balcony area where he assumed Jungin must have stopped too, but there wasn't anything significant. He then made rounds of the area close to the apartment building, places where he thought Jungin must have been to. But he was stuck. He still didn't know what Jungin liked or disliked. He hadn't _known_ her truly.

 

He walked around the market and salons and pet care centers. He asked around too, describing Jungin to the best of his ability. He found nothing.

 

Returning to the apartment, he saw a moving truck outside. He didn't think much of it, probably another tenant coming to live here. But as he went up the elevator, he realized that these boxes seemed familiar. Nobody was moving in. Someone was moving out. And he had a perfect idea _who_ that was.

 

He was almost at Baekhyun's apartment door when he caught himself. This was perfect. Baekhyun would leave and he wouldn't be distracted anymore. He turned away and went back to his own apartment.

 

Still he couldn't help but sneak peaks through the video feed. Two guys were moving Baekhyun's stuff down to the van, but he hadn't seen Baekhyun yet. Through the rest of the afternoon, he was doing his work on Jungin's case as well as keeping an eye out for Baekhyun. He was not going to talk or anything, but he still didn't want to miss seeing him. _Probably for the last time ever,_ he thought. And then he didn't thought about it at all.

 

Evening came and went to the night. No sign of Baekhyun, no clue of where Jungin was. Just when Kyungsoo's chances of getting back to being a detective were high, his life had decided to start fucking up. The normal routine was no longer an option, but when he couldn't ignore his hunger anymore he found out that he had nothing significant to eat available at home. Just two days old bread and cereals, no milk.

 

He was still deciding what to make of the available ingredients when the doorbell rang. He absently went to open it.

 

Baekhyun was just there, looking like he'd freshly showered. His arm was still in a splint. Kyungsoo just stared, watching as Baekhyun's cheeks slowly turned pink under his gaze. How can he be so... Kyungsoo actually didn't have a word to describe Baekhyun. He couldn't pick the right one, though _breathtaking_ came close enough.

 

"Uh," Baekhyun started in his usual, awkwardly colloquial way. "I brought you dinner. I mean _us,_ brought us dinner. Can we... ?" He held up a paper take out bag with the logo of the nearest Chinese restaurant.

 

Kyungsoo simply stepped aside. Now that he was alone here without Jungin keeping him on his guard, Kyungsoo felt a strange, dangerous thrill in inviting Baekhyun inside. He watched as the author shuffled in, looking around with almost guarded expression. Almost like he was storing everything in his memory.

 

Kyungsoo led them to the kitchen where he provided the utensils and Baekhyun revealed the contents of the take out box. Sweet and sour pork, chowmein and dumplings. The silence was suffocating as they sat opposite each other on the kitchen counter. Kyungsoo tried hard not to think about what had happened the last time they'd been sitting here in the exact position. His heart was far too loud in his ears to concentrate on the clinking noises of their chopsticks against the glassware.

 

"Is this how we're going to be now?" Baekhyun said finally. "Not speaking, not caring?"

 

Kyungsoo looked up from his food. He'll allow small talk, for now. Small talk was never dangerous. "How's your arm?"

 

"It's getting better."

 

"That's good."

 

Baekhyun was still looking at him. Then: "I'm moving out."

 

Kyungsoo nodded. "I saw the truck."

 

"And I thought I should thank you for all you've done. So Chinese..."

 

Kyungsoo inclined his head. "Your welcome."

 

Baekhyun dropped his chopsticks in the plate and leaned back. He looked slightly angry. "You weren't exactly an ideal neighbor but I guess I had fun. I also came to say goodbye to Monggu and Jjangu. I should get it over with, I guess. Where are they?"

 

Kyungsoo also put down his chopsticks. "They aren't here anymore and they weren't exactly mine. It was part of the job. I was taking care of them for someone else."

 

"I thought you booked clients for overseas company online."

 

 _Maybe I should just tell him._ Kyungsoo almost considered it, since there was a high probability that he'd be fired in the morning. But he hadn't ever broken confidentiality during job, and wouldn't do that now even if he was getting fired. "They belonged to a work friend. I was just raising them for a while."

 

Baekhyun had this strange expression on his face. Like he knew Kyungsoo was lying but he also understood why that was necessary. "I guess then I should leave. It's obvious you didn't want me to be here."

 

Kyungsoo stood up when Baekhyun did. He wasn't going to stop him. He knew what kind of man he was and he knew what his next actions would cause to happen. If he perused this man now, he'd keep perusing him until... _Until he's mine._ And that's not what he wanted to do right now. There were so many things he had to take care of first. He had to solve this problem with Jungin, get a clear idea of where he stood now professionally. And then _maybe..._

 

They were at the door. Baekhyun was trying not to stare at the lock pad. Kyungsoo was trying not to touch Baekhyun as he reached around him to enter the password. He was trying not to feel anything as Baekhyun turned away his head in order to avoid looking at the password.

 

And as Baekhyun took a step out of the door, Kyungsoo grabbed his arm. He slowly pulled Baekhyun inside, into his arms. It was just a hug. Something that even friends share. But he still couldn't tell whose heart was beating so wildly against his chest.

 

"I just want to say that it'll be okay," Kyungsoo said softly into Baekhyun's shoulder. "Your arm will heal. Your new book will be a bestseller. You'll find something extraordinary to write the next time. So just don't ..." _leave. Please, don't go._ "... worry. Everything is going to be just fine."

 

Baekhyun was trembling as he pulled out of the hug. His eyes were bright. His breath was laboured. He was so close, so perfect that Kyungsoo almost gave in. How was it possible that he had become someone so important to Kyungsoo in such a little time.

 

Baekhyun took a step closer. If Kyungsoo just tilted his head, they'd be kissing. But he knew that if he kissed him now, he won't ever stop.

 

"I came because I wanted you to tell me to stay," Baekhyun whispered. "I wanted you to say the words because then I would have changed my mind. But... you aren't even going to try, are you?"

 

"I'm a liar. I've been lying ever since you came here," Kyungsoo sighed. "Do you want to be with a liar?"

 

Baekhyun laughed. It wasn't funny, it sounded painful. "Every one lies, Kyungsoo. All the time. But I know that _this..."_ He took Kyungsoo's hand, aligning their palms together. The heat and desire coursing through their skin was tangible. _"This_ isn't a lie. This is something real. The most real thing I've ever felt for anyone ever in my life. And I will risk taking a chance for at least this one reality."

 

Kyungsoo was gone the minute Baekhyun had touched him. He leaned forward until they were cheek to cheek. "Tomorrow. Give me until tomorrow."

 

Baekhyun turned and looked into his eyes, into his soul. He saw the sincerity there. "Tomorrow," he agreed. "I'll wait until tomorrow. And after that, I'm gone Kyungsoo."

 

And he left. Just like that. Kyungsoo closed the door. _Tomorrow. I'm going to stop him tomorrow._

.

.

 

Jungin woke up to the sound of waves. She was pretty sure that the last night was nothing more than a dream. Kyungsoo hadn't left her. She hadn't panicked and ran away. She hadn't met that man. Everything was okay.

 

But as soon as she was conscious she knew it was real. Her head hurt, stinging from the forceful attack of the man when he knocked her out. The room was unfamiliar. Huge. Luscious. Everything in the room was perfect, contents purchased by someone filthy rich. The coffee brown and bone color scheme was soothing to the eye. But the most spectacular view was right in front of her.

 

She was so drawn to it that she hadn't even thought of moving before she found herself staring out the glass wall. The sea, perfect and blue, shattering as waves crashed into the small ledge right where her glass doors seemed to open. She'd liked the view from D.O's apartment, but _this..._ This was something else entirely.

 

Gathering herself, she turned back to the room. The clock told her it was 9:27 am. She'd been unconscious for the whole night then. The door left to the luxurious bed was the bathroom. The door on the right was locked from the outside. There was no way to leave. She felt the feeling of being trapped again.

 

Turning back to the glass wall and double doors, she pulled at the latch and sighed in relief when it opened. The wind stroked her hair, knocking the band that held them together right off. She couldn't care less. She stepped out on the ledge that spread five yards ahead of her and looked down. It wasn't a deep fall, perhaps 30 meters, but she still felt the sense of vertigo as she saw azure waves crashing against the stone face. She looked right then left, the walls covered any other escape route.

 

The only way was _down._

 

Disoriented, she looked back at the prison. It was the ground floor of a huge house apparently. The first floor had a splendid balcony and more glass fronts. Next to her room were other rooms too, with a glass front. She saw a living room with a kitchen space and something that looked like a library and reading area. She tried the doors but couldn't get in.

 

Walking back to the ledge, she almost considered jumping. Almost because she had no idea how to swim. She'd never been a fan of water and swimming pools after an incident in her high school where bullies drowned a boy in the pool. She'd become terribly reluctant to even consider taking swimming lessons.

 

Giving up, she turned back to the house.

 

And froze.

 

He was there. Standing on the balcony above, he was bathed in direct sunlight. This was probably the clearest image of him she'd ever seen, and for a moment she couldn't breathe because... there's no way that monstrous man could be so...

 

But it _was_ him.

 

He'd shaved, jaw smooth and sharp. He was in casual clothes now, white T-shirt with white sweatpants. He also must have showered as his hair looked wet and slicked back, emphasizing his forehead and eyes. Eyes which stared into Jungin's... almost hungrily.

 

It was those eyes that snapped Jungin back to reality. He was surely handsome but that didn't mean he was good. He had some kind of intentions with her. He was dangerous, a murderer. Who knew how many men he'd killed before that night? She took a step back, remembering that she was standing right on the edge now. Turning back, the water almost looked inviting.

 

"What do you want from me?" she asked, her voice shaking.

 

The man didn't reply at once. "I don't want you to testify against me. That's what I want."

 

"Okay, done. I won't testify against you. I'll say... that I forgot what you looked like." She peeked back to the water. She knew she was spitting garbage and had to sound convincing. "I'll say I was drunk and didn't get a good look at your face. So please, let me go home."

 

"Back to that agent?"

 

Jungin froze. _How does he know about D.O?_ Could it really be true that he'd known where she was all along, knew when she would try to run and how to kidnap her at the exact moment? "Yes... Back to him."

 

Something strange passed over his face then. An expression that suddenly reminded Jungin of her father. It was something dark, possessive. She trembled, realizing that she was actually trying to bargain with a monster here. A vain effort.

 

"I can't let you go," he said. "I won't." He was firm. Like he'd already decided her entire future life already.

 

She was not going to be someone's possession again, someone's plaything. _I'd rather die._ She stepped off the edge and into the water.

.

.

 

Chanyeol had checked on her several times. He almost panicked and called a doctor. After all, she'd been unconscious for two days already. He didn't remember hitting her that hard, but given how slender she was, it was a surprise he hadn't broken her accidentally already. He handled her gently when he had transferred her from the car to the guest bedroom. He closed his eyes when he took off the hoodie she was packed in, sighing in relief to find a navy t-shirt underneath. He'd also tried spoon feeding her some water. As per the doctors instructions over the phone, he also wiped her face, and iced the wound over her head, three times each day.

 

It was so hard not to touch her. He didn't give in to the temptation. The urge to run his fingers through her hair, the urge to stroke her lips with his own. Every time he was taking care of her, he had to show restraint. He was trying hard to respect her boundaries.

 

This morning when he woke up, he wasn't expecting anything other than the repeat of the last two days. He went outside absently to check out the weather and saw her. Every time he found himself dumbfounded because she was real.

 

She stood with her back to him, watching the waves. Her hair were untamed, flapping every which way in the wind though she didn't try to control them. Her clothes were too big on her, testament that they belonged to someone else, as they also flapped against her slender frame. Everything about her was strangely fascinating, especially in the morning light.

 

Just when he thought he couldn't get any more stunned by her, she turned and saw him. Her eyes widened, deep pools of brown liquid. He didn't know what her emotions were as she took him in. He knew that he looked different than the man who'd brought her here. _Kidnapped her,_ he reminded himself.

 

And when she finally appeared scared, Chanyeol remembered what he had to next. He had asked himself that question a lot of times ever since he came here. And he finally had an answer. Sort of.

 

"What do you want from me?" she asked. He hated that she sounded so scared.

 

"I don't want you to testify against me. That's what I want." _Exactly._ Why else would he do something so rash? Another part of his brain, a part that knew he was lying, chuckled at him.

 

She started stammering. The voice of a person who was at the end of their endurance, who would do anything to be free. Her desperation was so clear that he almost agreed to let her go. Almost. But he couldn't. _I can't. If I let you go now I might..._ He didn't know what would happen, only that it would be incredibly bad.

 

Her face broke at his rejection. He saw something like dread, fear, and then plain horror. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought that she wasn't just scared of him. There was another kind of fear inside of her, another nightmare she couldn't let go of. And then her eyes cleared with fierce determination.

 

He didn't even have time to breathe, as she stepped back and fell into the void.

 

His body moved before he had a chance to think about it. He launched himself off the balcony. Landing in the grassy ground, he limped forward and looked down. He only saw frothing waves. He waited for Jungin to reappear, take in the gulp of air to survive. He waited for thirty seconds. _Nothing._ And then he realized that she probably didn't know how to swim. Most people didn't. Another ten seconds passed.

 

He jumped into the water too.


	11. Safe Haven

  
 

Kyungsoo was sitting in the chair opposite Jongdae's desk. He was waiting for Jongdae to return from a court session where he'd gone with the Chief Inspector, the very man who would decide what to do with Kyungsoo.

 

He was no longer nervous about it. Whatever came to him would be something he was going to accept as fate. If he was fired, he'd go back to Baekhyun and start a quiet life with him. If he was demoted even further, he'll tell Baekhyun the truth and start a quiet life with Baekhyun anyways. He had never been more sure of his future goals.

 

Jongdae and Chief Inspector came in after another twenty minutes. Kyungsoo stood up to salute them and sat down when the Inspector gestured him to. There was a moment of tense silence in which the Inspector opened up a file in front of him and studied it carefully.

 

"Do Kyungsoo, age 25. Joined us six years ago. Performance record as a detective is perfect, except for one mistake on which you were demoted. Performance record as a witness protection agent is also perfect until this recent incidence. Is this correct?" The inspector looked at Jongdae.

 

"It is, sir," Jongdae replied.

 

"Okay," the Inspector closed the file and looked at Kyungsoo. "Agent D.O you've managed to lose an important witness for an important trial and there's no way to figure out if the witness is alive or dead. You mentioned in the report that she left willingly, but at the same time there had been a break in in your apartment. Couldn't it have been staged by the witness herself? She left the apartment after making sure that you didn't know of her absence, perhaps she also damaged the window by herself?"

 

"Since there's no video evidence of the fact, it can be taken as a possibility," added Jongdae. "I reviewed the witness's previous files and found some things that were... not right."

 

Kyungsoo glared at Jongdae. He'd asked the man for those files but he hadn't received them. He knew Jongdae could be a strict boss but this was downright vindictive.

 

"I was told not to give you anything about the case until your position was decided," Jongdae replied to his unsaid accusation.

 

The Chief said, "You haven't told me, agent, if you think it was possible for her to deceive you?"

 

Kyungsoo didn't know what made him certain, but he knew that the girl he'd cared for wasn't a trickster. "The window was cut with a laser cutter and put back together with glass glue. Both of these things weren't in the apartment, weren't recorded being taken inside. There's no way she could have done it."

 

This seemed to satisfy the Inspector. "I've been in a meeting regarding the trial. After the news about Jung's treatment of his wife and daughter came to public, everyone has been clamoring for it to be resolved. That witness has to testify who she saw. Even if it isn't a perfect lead, we need something to show to the public."

 

Jongdae shifted in his seat. Kyungsoo didn't dare to breathe.

 

"Which is why I'm promoting you back to your status as the head detective," said the Inspector. "Since you're the one who let her go, you have to bring her back. I'm giving you the full authority of this case. Use as many resources, agents, detectives you need just get it done. You have a limited time of a month, because after that the court is going to seal this case. You do realize how bad it's going to be for our department if that happened?"

 

Kyungsoo blinked, then looked at Jongdae. _What did he just say?_

Jongdae was keeping his expression neutral. He got up, retrieved something from the drawer and came back to Kyungsoo. "Here's your badge and weapons. Welcome back, Detective Kyungsoo."

 

Kyungsoo accepted the badge and revolver, his old things. It felt like he was finally home. He bowed to them both, then saluted them, and then said, "I'll make sure to bring her back."

 

The Chief Inspector chuckled. "Get out of here, go start working."

.

.

 

Baekhyun waited. He was sure this was going to come to bite him in the ass, but he kept thinking about what Sehun had said about giving everything up for someone special. Kyungsoo wasn't just an agent doing his job, he was also a kind man. Someone who cared. Someone who saw more in Baekhyun than his famous reputation.

 

Kyungsoo had left a small message on his instagram account, since they really did have each other's numbers. It simply said, _At work. Let's have dinner together._

 

He had reacted completely stalker-like and opened Kyungsoo's account, only to see that he had just created it to send him a message. Even though he didn't have to, Baekhyun was going to wait until the night if possible. His day was freed up, so he decided to do something productive, as much as he could with one hand.

 

It was a slow work, but he somehow managed to complete it before the evening. He hired an Uber cab, went to the bus station, and then came home. Dinner was a few hours away still. He was completely useless at cooking, even when both his hands worked, so he assumed that Kyungsoo would fix dinner himself.

 

He called Sehun. He needed to know if the absence of Jjangu and Monggu were also his doing. He needed to be certain that he hadn't actually killed Jungin.

 

"Hey, man. What's up?" Sehun sounded hoarse, like he'd been doing something that had rendered him speechless. Baekhyun tried not to smirk.

 

"How did it go?" Baekhyun asked.

 

"Weird. I got in, there was nobody there."

 

Baekhyun frowned. "Did Ky- The agent send her away before he came to me?"

 

"Didn't look like it. The replacement guy also didn't know if she was there." Sehun explained the whole thing, what he'd found when he went into the apartment. Baekhyun listened with baited breath.

 

"Is that so? I wonder if..." Baekhyun trailed off. At least now it was obvious why Kyungsoo's expression had been so desolate. His witness was missing. "Anyways, you should go to the drop off point. I left something for you there."

 

He disconnected the call. He tried calling Park Chanyeol. It rang a few times. Then went to voicemail. He tried again after a while, and Mr Park replied, "B? I thought I already..."

 

"The witness is missing," Baekhyun said without any ceremony. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about it?"

 

Park Chanyeol took a deep breath. "No, I had nothing to do with it."

 

"I just figured you hired someone else behind my back because I was taking too long."

 

Park Chanyeol chuckled. "B, there's literally nobody good enough for me to hire except you. I told you to stop the job because my lawyer said he'd handle whatever came up by himself."

 

Baekhyun didn't understand it. "She's missing. Did your lawyer take care of it?"

 

"Look, B. I don't care if she's missing. I really don't." There was something in the background, the soft sounds of sea. "I just want this to be done with."

 

Baekhyun disconnected the call again. He sat down, wondering what was going on. _Did Jungin run away?_ Nah, he refused to believe it. Was Kyungsoo taken off the case? Was Jungin with some other agent now? And then he thought of something that scared him. _Does he know the truth about me?_

Even though it was impossible. Baekhyun took special care to do things quietly. He was almost a celebrity, his face was well known, he had millions following him on social media. He couldn't ever be seen doing his _other_ job. He was always careful. There's no way Kyungsoo knew or even suspected.

 

He imagined if Kyungsoo knew, if he rejected him... The thought was extremely painful. Why was he like this? Just why did it had be Kyungsoo who finally melted his heart... who finally made Baekhyun want things he had never really wanted?

 

 _But he's worth it._ Baekhyun realized. Kyungsoo was worth the risk. And when there relationship was somewhat better, Baekhyun would try to make him understand why he was the way he was. He knew Kyungsoo would also tell him truth about himself and his career. He just couldn't describe how positive he felt about this change. _And if I have to stop working as a hired gun?_ He asked himself. _Am I ready for what that would mean?_

By all means, he was rich enough, famous enough now that even without the filthy money he got in exchange for killing and making people disappear, he'd be well off for years. But well off wasn't going to cut it if it meant that—

 

The phone rang. He picked up and was rewarded by a stunned Sehun on the other side.

 

"What is this?" Sehun all but yelled. "Why did you... I didn't even finish your job!"

 

Baekhyun smiled. "Man, you're like the only friend I have and you asked me for I hope is the last favor ever. How could I not?"

 

Sehun's emotions were clear in his voice. "I can't... I don't know what to say, B. This is... Thank you. Thank you so much. I'll owe you for the rest of my life!"

 

"But you know," Baekhyun said, also feeling sobered. "You should have courage to tell him about yourself. If not now, then later on. And please, invite me when you get married."

 

Sehun laughed. Baekhyun could hear the tears in it. "That's .... Who are you and what have you done to B?"

 

"I just... I think I realize why you're taking such a big step in your life. I feel the same... almost."

 

"You really like that agent, don't you?"

 

"I think I do. Very much."

 

Later in the night, Kyungsoo knocked on his door. As expected he'd brought dinner with him. And he looked tired won to his bones. He didn't come inside when Baekhyun invited him though.

 

"I have to say something first," Kyungsoo said as Baekhyun tired to convince him to come in. "You're all packed already, aren't you?"

 

"Yeah," Baekhyun said warily. "Half of my stuff is gone though, I'll have to call it back... that is, if we... if there's a reason for me to return."

 

Kyungsoo smiled. "And I heard from the owner that you've already signed of the apartment as vacated."

 

Baekhyun had forgotten about that. "Shit, I already have. No need, I can just rent it back!" he caught himself. "That is, if I need to come back..."

 

"No need," Kyungsoo said with a smile. "Call for your stuff. You can move in with me."

 

Baekhyun blinked a few times. He remembered that he'd asked Kyungsoo about what the relationship between them was. He wasn't sure how the whole _moving in_ thing worked into that one.

 

"I know," Kyungsoo said, still smiling like he was trying not to lose nerve. "I know it feels like I'm rushing, but if we become roommates, we can learn about each other better. And we can figure out our situation too. I mean, it wouldn't hurt to try."

 

 _He's sacred to trust me,_ Baekhyun realized. _Yet he still wants to make it work._ But it was true that it was too fast, too much. _I'm not ready to let out all of my secrets yet._

"We don't have to do anything more than that," Kyungsoo said, he must have seen the panic on Baekhyun's face. "But we have to start somehow."

 

Baekhyun looked at the agent's earnest, sincere face. He saw the fear behind his eyes, fear of being rejected. And he realized that he was right. They had to start somewhere.

 

He sighed as he stepped inside his apartment. "I have a few boxes, and bags that need to be moved. Why don't you help me, roommate?"

 

Kyungsoo's eyes went wide, and then they crunched as he smiled. Baekhyun's heart literally jumped at that cute, smiling face. He was sure he hadn't seen the agent this way before. And it was only the beginning.

 

Kyungsoo placed the dinner on the shelf and started helping Baekhyun with his stuff. It took them seven rounds, but eventually Baekhyun's stuff was piled up in Kyungsoo's living room. For a moment they just stared at it.

 

Then Baekhyun said, "Dinner?"

 

Kyungsoo smiled. "Dinner."

.

.

 

Jungin was free. That was the only though as her breaths left her completely. Above, the blue ocean and sunlight made a magical spectacle, and bubbles coming out of her mouth added to the silent music of her freedom. No more fears, or her father, or that man. Nothing could touch her here.

 

Above her the peace was broken as something heavy crashed into the sea. Her eyes struggled, but they were losing strength as her lungs emptied out. Before she could make out what it was, she was unconscious.

.

.

 

Chanyeol could barely see her as she sank into the depths. She was so frail, her hair swooping around her face lazily. Chanyeol's heart was beating loudly in his ears, as he tried to hold his breath and started kicking his legs, moving towards her faster. He wasn't sure what baffled him the most. The fact that Jungin didn't how to swim or that she knew but had no will to live. The fact that he was hated by her so much death was a logical option to her.

 

He reached her, and knew that she wasn't breathing anymore. There were no bubbles around her mouth or nose. She was like a sinking statue. He grabbed her wrist and started kicking backwards, arching his back as he tugged her away. It was a hard journey back to the surface, his lungs were screaming at him. He broke through first and took in a huge breath, but Jungin's head lolled on his side. She didn't respond to the oxygen and wind around them. Cursing, he dragged her to the edge of the ledge where there were few rocks and set her on top of one.

 

She wasn't responding still. He started thumping her chest, pumping the air out. _Nothing._ Giving up every shred of decency, he attached his mouth to her soft, cold lips and started administering CPR, his hands pressing down on her chest trying to squeeze the water out of her lungs. He did it five times, growing desperate every second. It didn't even register that the hot wet liquid falling down his cheeks were actually tears.

 

"Wake up!" he moaned, and thumped on her chest hard. _"Wake UP!"_

 

She spat out water. And her beautiful eyes flew wide open. He knew that she saw him, knew him. And for just a moment there, it looked like she couldn't believe what she was looking at. Then her eyes closed as she fainted again.

 

Chanyeol didn't know how he managed to swim around the cliff to find the walkway that would lead up to his house with Jungin on his back, but he could tell that there was no way he'd let her near that ledge again. He would have to transfer her to another room, somewhere with locked windows or no windows at all. He'd been trying to make her feel at ease, but now it looked like he had to fight to keep her alive.

 

He put her in the pantry or a while. It was the only room that fit the description in his head. He changed into a clean set of clothes and waited for her to wake up. It seemed like this was all he was going to do now, hurt her, and then wait till she gained her consciousness.

 

Her reaction was expected when she woke up an hour later. Her eyes screamed hatred. She looked at him like someone looks at an insect.

 

"What do you... want from me?" she asked. This time there was no fear in her voice, just plain loathing.

 

 _I don't know._ "I won't hurt you, I promise." He held up a rolled bundle of clothes. "Here, you can change. And then I'll see what we can do for breakfast."

 

She eyed the clothes. Then her face cleared. "I get it. I know what you want."

 

Chanyeol nearly screamed when she stood up and started taking off her clothes. He threw the bundle of clothes at her feet and turned his back in a hurry. He was still trying to accept the reality of her here, he didn't know what he'd do if he actually saw her naked.

 

"Turn around," she said after a moment.

 

"Are you decent?"

 

"Turn around."

 

He peeked back, and almost choked on his breath. She wasn't decent. She was only in her underthings. And she was glaring at him, like a challenge. "I know men like you. This is all that you want from women, isn't it? So go ahead. Do what you want. Then throw me in trash. Just get it over with."

 

It was the resigned tone of her voice, like she'd expected this to happen, that got to him. He forgot that she was partially nude and faced her seriously. "Look, Kim Jungin-ssi. I don't have any animosity towards you. The only reason I brought you here is to keep you from testifying. That's all. I don't want to... do _that_ with you."

 

She stalked forward until she was right in his reach. "You say that now. But how long will you control your basic needs, huh? I don't want to wait for the suspense and everything. Just get it over with, kill me and throw me away. WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING FOR?"

 

The venom in her voice, her ragged breaths, and her wide eyes were the red flags that suddenly seemed clear to him. This wasn't about being kidnapped, this was something else.

 

"Someone hurt you in the past," Chanyeol said, certain that he had reached the right conclusion. "And right now you're panicking. Relax, take a deep breath. Please..."

 

She didn't relax, she started trembling, looking around at the pantry and the shelves filled with edible items. A rabbit in a trap.

 

Chanyeol didn't think. He grabbed her hand, grabbed the clothes and yanked her out of the pantry. He took her out front, in the garden with birds and noise. He sat her down and slowly helped her into the clothes, trying to be nice and not touching her skin at all. Once she was dressed, her tremors subsided.

 

She finally looked at him. _Really_ looked at him. "So you don't want to rape me?"

 

Chanyeol sighed. Sure he found her sexually appealing but he wasn't an asshole. "No, I don't."

 

"And you are not going to kill me?"

 

Chanyeol snorted. "I should've let you drown if that was my plan, don't you think?"

 

She looked at her hands, entwining her fingers. "Then _why...?"_

 

"I told you, I want to keep you from testifying." He started pacing in front of her. "You were in a witness protection program, right?"

 

"How do you know that?"

 

"I have my ways," he said, still pacing. "You were in a secure place with someone taking care of you. This is the same, the only thing that's different is the location. Think of this as a safe haven that we're going to share until this whole case thing blows over."

 

Jungin didn't look convinced. In fact her face was even more shocked.

 

"If you don't believe me then why don't you give it try?" He stopped pacing and gestured to the front gate. "I won't stop you from doing anything, even going outside. But you have to come back here. Or you can run away, of course. Whatever your choice."

 

Jungin looked at the front gate. It was high, and locked. She could climb it, but Chanyeol didn't think so. He started walking in the direction of the house. "Or you can come in and I'll fix you something to eat. We can chat. Get to know each other. Since our first meeting was only one-sided and you don't have all the facts about it."

 

He walked in and didn't look back. He didn't show how afraid he was that she would actually run. But he wanted to believe that his sincerity had been enough to make Jungin stay. Even for a single day.

 

He went into the kitchen, picked the fresh ingredients and started chopping the vegetables for soup. Jungin would like to have soup after her splash in the water. He heard the wind chimes as the door opened, and he didn't turn around to see that she had followed him inside. He could see her reflection in the glass shelf in front of him.

 

He looked down and started chopping with gusto. He didn't even try to hide his smile.

 


	12. Living Together

  
  
Living together with each other was actually rather crazy.

 

Baekhyun was beginning to realize that they were worlds apart from each other. He had habits and quirks that Kyungsoo definitely disliked but was too polite to mention. Firstly, Kyungsoo liked things neat and tidy; something Baekhyun had to work hard to achieve. Secondly, Kyungsoo believed that everything in a home had its place. Baekhyun wasn't able to determine the place of many things and ended up replacing them in wrong places which made Kyungsoo purse his lips in that, mildly dissatisfied way.

  
Kyungsoo was good at cooking, and Baekhyun had managed to break several pieces of glassware while washing the dishes. He tried to buy new things to apologize instead, but Kyungsoo had produce plastic ware from a cabinet and now they ate everything in those.

  
Despite the problems, there were also many nicer parts to living together.

  
The parts like eating together, talking about things that they liked or disliked. Parts where they saw movies together and then discussed the ending. Parts where they almost gave in to the lingering tension between them and stopped short of coming closer. Parts where they both knew that they _wanted_ each other, but were too uncertain of how it might end.

  
Baekhyun had taken care of his part time job for a while. He sent a simple message to his usual employers that he was unavailable, and then he had turned off his phone that he used for part time job. He had also discovered that Kyungsoo's apartment was mercifully devoid of cameras now.

  
But the most memorable part was when Kyungsoo had come clean, the day after they moved in together. He already knew that Kyungsoo was an agent, but he hadn't known that he was an ex-detective. That particular information actually scared him a little. Being a detective, Kyungsoo might have that sixth sense about knowing things. He might actually discover Baekhyun's secret.

  
But at the same time, Baekhyun found the truth extremely... _sexy._ Now that there were no secrets between them (at least from Kyungsoo's side) Kyungsoo was showing him his real self. He never hesitated to be himself and the frank, uncaring version of Kyungsoo was making Baekhyun slowly lose his mind.

  
As promised, they'd been taking it slow. They'd been trying to get to know each other. Baekhyun had shared whatever he could about his past, his family. Admittedly, it wasn't much, and more than a half of it was beautifully constructed lies, which he could actually publish and get awards for.

  
Kyungsoo had told him all about the hero father and hero brother who'd died on the line of duty. His pride and desire to be like them was so clear when he spoke about them. His mother was now remarried, and apparently he wasn't that close to his step siblings as he should be. Though he kept good relationship with his mother.

  
Baekhyun couldn't get enough of Kyungsoo opening up like this. Every piece of information was like another thing he could like about an already likable person. He was headed straight to a giant crush. But he always felt guilty because he wasn't being as truthful.

  
Kyungsoo had given up the whole living room for Baekhyun, and bought several bookcases in which Baekhyun was able to display his huge collection once his stuff came back. The room (previously occupied by Jungin) was Baekhyun's bedroom now. He was starting to get easy with this new life. It had been just a few days, but already he had several traces of him everywhere.

  
The post-its he usually wrote whenever he was getting an idea about another book could be found stuck to the fridge, or to the mirrors, or wedged between the couch seats. Some, if not all, of his clothes were scattered about the apartment. And then there were books. When he wasn't writing, or killing people as a hired gun, he read. Read a lot. But his reading habits were also something he didn't share with Kyungsoo.

  
Kyungsoo was the kind of person who would pick out a single book, read it, bookmark it and replace it in the shelf for later perusal. Baekhyun liked to dive into several books per day. He often didn't finish the books. Halfway through the chapters, he could guess the direction of the story and predict how it might end. And one look at the last page was enough to confirm that, yes, he was right. When that happened, Baekhyun put the book down and opened the next one. Rinse, repeat.

  
The result: books could be found everywhere. Under the dining table, beside the stove, in bathroom cabinets, and even on the floor in case Baekhyun felt hot and wanted to put his cheek against the cool tiles.

  
Kyungsoo hated the disrespect to the books, but Baekhyun occasionally caught him grinning whenever he unearthed a book in an unusual place, like in the fridge that one time.

  
It was the little things he liked the most. When Kyungsoo would be brave and stand so close they were practically leaning into each other. Or when Kyungsoo would smile like the sun and look Baekhyun straight in the eyes. Or when Kyungsoo felt angry at him but would stop mid speech to just stare, like he was just as struck by Baekhyun as Baekhyun was by him. He loved when he could feel Kyungsoo watching him. He loved that his clumsy moments, or mature moments, could elicit the desire to stare from Kyungsoo. He also loved it when he caught Kyungsoo doing that, and Kyungsoo would startle and look away.

  
But mostly, he loved when Kyungsoo said that one time, "Baekhyun, can't you just stop being so cute?"

  
All he had done was lick his fingers because Kyungsoo's meals were heavenly. He hadn't been trying to be cute. But somehow Kyungsoo thought he was. Baekhyun considered himself manly and usually the comment like this would offend him. But if Kyungsoo thought he was cute, maybe he could live with it.

  
Nicer things aside, there was one thing that Baekhyun was slowly beginning to hate; Kyungsoo's work hours. Now that he was restored as a detective, and apparently in charge of the search party that was looking for Jungin, Kyungsoo was away more and more. At first Baekhyun was thankful for some distance between the two of them. He didn't want to end up doing something that might peek Kyungsoo's suspicions, after all: as a writer he wasn't supposed to have such calloused fingers and scars along his body. He wasn't supposed to worry that much about keeping himself fit.

  
Hence during the hours Kyungsoo was away Baekhyun cloud keep up his work out regime and not arouse any suspicions. After a while though, Baekhyun was bored of being alone. He didn't have any tasks by his employers, nor did he have to write any other book for the next few months. Even though he tried to work on the million ideas and WIPs that were rotting in his computer, he still couldn't deny that he was starting to miss Kyungsoo's presence in his life. A few days, and it was already too late to fix this need.

  
He tried taking online cooking classes. Failed miserably. It was a miracle he'd managed to clean the kitchen before Kyungsoo returned. He tried reading a whole book form the first page to last, and couldn't go on further than seven chapters when he already knew what was about to happen. He also tried to call his family - and then chickened out after the first ring of the phone.

  
The moments when Kyungsoo returned from work were amazing. He wasn't used to waiting on anyone like this, so he couldn't tell how he would react each time Kyungsoo walked in through the door. Each time, he surprised himself more than he did Kyungsoo. The first day he was polite and gave him space, offered him water. The second day he barraged Kyungsoo with work related questions, which Kyungsoo answered quietly. The third day he prompted the conversation with "How's the case going?" and simply listened to Kyungsoo talk as they both served themselves some dinner.

  
Something changed on the fourth day, though.

.

.

 

It was late, Kyungsoo still wasn't home, and Baekhyun was worried. He was aware that being a detective there was a fair chance that Kyungsoo was out doing something dangerous. Even if a missing person case sounded less complicated, there was no telling exactly what sort of mess Jungin was in. Baekhyun was almost certain that Mr. Park had something to do with it, and he knew his reputation well. Kyungsoo could get hurt.

 

The thought of it was too much to bear for him. He wasn't like this before, but Kyungsoo was the owner of a particular place in his life now. _If anything happened to him..._

  
Every moment that Kyungsoo didn't come back, increased Baekhyun's worry. He was pacing as he watched the time crawl. Two in morning, and there was still no sign of Kyungsoo. He kept going to windows and watching for his car. But the night was dark and most of the civilized world was asleep. He was also tired. But even as he consoled himself that he was probabay overreacting, that Kyungsoo was busy in work, he couldn't understand why his heart trembled with fear.

  
Suddenly he heard the beeping of keypad on the front door. He all but ran out to see Kyungsoo shuffle in and take off his shoes. Baekhyun tackled him in a hug, making Kyungsoo fall back againt the door.

  
A huff whooshed out of Kyungsoo and Baekhyun tightened his arms around him. The fear, the strange trembling of his heart was finally settled down now that he'd confirmed that Kyungsoo was safe. Instead, he felt the first itch of anger.

  
"Do you have any idea how fucking worried I was?" he said, not raising his voice but just enough that Kyungsoo knew. "You could've just called, hell, sent me message through that damn insta account you created. Why didn't you just...."

  
"I'm sorry," Kyungsoo said, his hands deposited whatever he was carrying on the floor and came around Baekhyun tightly, holding him flush against himself. "I didn't realize... I thought you might be asleep so I didn't want to... I'm so sorry."

  
Baekhyun tried to calm down. Fuck, he tried to guess why it all mattered. _So what if Kyungsoo was late? He was a cop. He could take care of himself. Why am I so worried, like a fucking wife?_ He took a deep breath and stepped out of the hug, though he didn't go any further. Face to face, he could see how tired Kyungsoo was. The search for Jungin must be going terribly. There were dark circles under Kyungsoo's eyes already. Again, that sting of worry stabbed Baekhyun's heart.

  
"Whatever," he said, trying to sound like it was no big deal, even though it was. "Just let me know beforehand. So I can rest easy."

  
Kyungsoo nodded fast. He was looking at him strangely. Almost like this was the side of Baekhyun that he hadn't expected. Honestly, Baekhyun himself hadn't expected it. But if Kyungsoo kept looking at him like that, he would get even more confused.

  
"Did you have dinner?" Kyungsoo asked softly.

  
Baekhyun just nodded. He was aware of how close they stood. He could smell the day's hard work and sweat on Kyungsoo. He could feel that heat, that manliness just dripping off of him. It was making him go crazy.

  
"And you haven't slept a wink, have you?" This question didn't require an answer. Baekhyun knew how sleepy he looked. Kyungsoo almost smiled. "Then you should go to bed. I will be quiet, and I promise not to make you worry again."

  
Baekhyun huffed and turned to go to his room. _Sleep._ He just needed sleep to clear his muddled thoughts. But then Kyungsoo grabbed his arm to stop him, to make him turn around and face him.

  
"Goodnight," Kyungsoo whispered, leaned in and pressed the softest imaginable kiss against Baekhyun's lips.

  
It lasted for just a breath. He stepped around Baekhyun and walked straight to his room. The door closed and Baekhyun walked in like a zombie. He was still processing what just happened. Staring at Kyungsoo's closed door wasn't helping either. He shuffled into his bedroom, and fell into the soft bed with a groan. His lips still stung with the pressure of Kyungsoo's kiss.

  
_Goodnight kiss._

  
Was _that_ what just happened? Were they really the kind of people who lived together and now, they could kiss each other goodnight? Baekhyun closed his eyes. They'd decided to take things as they came, slowly and without much effort. And if Kyungsoo wanted to call him cute one day, and then kiss him goodnight the other, then he realized he was just fine with it.

.

.

  
The next morning Baekhyun woke up warily. He went through the motions of showering and brushing his teeth. He could smell something delicious, the wafts coming out of the kitchen. He peered into the kitchen and tested the waters. Kyungsoo was freshly showered too and wearing nothing but his pants. His shirt and jacket, along with his detective badge and gun were slung across the back of a chair. It seemed like he was going to dress up after he was done with cooking the breakfast.

  
This was his first time seeing Kyungsoo half naked, and it wasn't disappointing. Underneath his modest dressing, Kyungsoo was well built. Endless muscles stretched through his arms and back. When he turned a bit, Baekhyun could see his delicious abs, the firm roundness of his chest and flat valley where his bellybutton resided. He was beautiful. And Baekhyun was certain that he was going to bust a vein if he didn't take in the much needed oxygen right now. Like right now.

  
He walked out, and slowly went to where Kyungsoo was working. He didn't want to spook the other, and neither did he want to interrupt the work, as Kyungsoo beat the egg in a bowl with a fork. Each movement made the veins in his arms pop and disappear. Baekhyun had to remind himself to breathe again.

  
He walked up behind Kyungsoo and decided that he was about to set some ground rules too. Kyungsoo had given him the signal that he was ready to take things further, and Baekhyun was going to rise to the occasion. He sidled closer and put his arms around Kyungsoo's waist lightly. Kyungsoo paused in his work and slowly turned his head. He didn't act like he hated this, or that he wanted Baekhyun to put distance between them. He turned his head more, probably trying to face Baekhyun.

  
Baekhyun leaned in and kissed Kyungsoo's lips the moment they were accessible. Just like last night, he didn't let the contact linger any longer than a few seconds. He broke apart and murmured, "Good morning. What's for breakfast today?"

  
Kyungsoo pursed his lips and slowly, began working again. His voice was slightly unsteady as he replied, "What you like the most, obviously."

  
"Cheese omelet," Baekhyun sighed and put his chin on Kyungsoo's shoulder, watching him work, maintaining this back hug. He inhaled the scent that came from the firm smoothness of Kyungsoo's skin, pressed his lips on the bare shoulder. "Yum."

  
The days after were like this again. Whether Kyungsoo was late or Baekhyun was sleepy, they never ended or started the day without greeting each other with a kiss. Soft, barely there, shy touches of their lips. Baekhyun wondered if he could be naughty, if he could try to kiss Kyungsoo harder one morning. He wondered if Kyungsoo would fall to the bait too. Whether he would also bite back if Baekhyun tired it. Whether he would let in Baekhyun's tongue when teased with it.

  
These fantasies made him look forward to the mornings, and nights. He wondered if they could also develop the habit of greeting each other in afternoons and evenings too. Basically, he agreed that living together was actually pretty neat.

 


	13. Trusting Each Other

  
 

Jungin didn't take her eyes off the man as she sat down on the stool against the kitchen island. He was preparing something for breakfast, though she couldn't tell what. His movements were practiced, like he'd made food for himself various times. Whatever it was, it smelled delicious. Her stomach constricted in anticipation of eating it.

 

She didn't know how long she'd been out cold but it was true she hadn't eaten anything in more than twenty four hours. The weakness she felt though, it was more than she expected. Then again, taking a tumble down the cliff was probably the reason why her body was losing strength fast.

 

It took an extreme level of stupidity and resolve to follow the man inside, when he'd left her alone in the garden a few minutes ago. She would have been better off trying to escape, and she could have easily. Despite her appearance, she was actually a pretty decent climber. All those years trying to sneak out of her house without letting her father catch her - she was fully trained. But then why she'd come back inside...?

 

Because the man had said something strange. Something that made her slightly curious. And also, she figured that if she had to escape, she should escape after gathering as much information about this man as possible. She'll have plenty to tell when she returned to D.O again. Plenty to incriminate and lock up this man.

 

He was almost finished with whatever he was making. It appeared to be soupy pasta of some sort, which involved cheese. It was too damn delicious and her mouth watered. Though, she forced herself to focus.

 

"You already know who I am," she started slowly, she wasn't going to make any mistakes this time. "Can you tell me who you are?"

 

The man didn't look up from his work. Concentrating like this, his whole mind bent on his task, he looked very handsome. It was one of the things she still couldn't get over. Why would someone so breathtaking try to kill anyone else?

 

"I guess I can tell you that much," he said after a moment. His deep voice was exactly like his features, sure and confident. But he sounded slightly different now than that night. Maybe because he was trying not to spook her any further. "My name is Park Chanyeol, and I'm the Vice President of the firm called Park Associate."

 

Jungin frowned. She had heard this name before. As a secretary, she'd heard about a lot of companies that traded and did business with her boss. But then again, she also remembered the most prominent members of each of those companies. She didn't remember seeing or hearing about this man before - she would have remembered someone like Park Chanyeol.

 

"Why did you kill that man?" The question slipped out before she could contain herself.

 

It didn't make any sense. If he really was a hotshot president of a huge company, there was really no need for him to kill anyone personally. He could have just as easily pulled the strings behind the scene as he pulled that trigger. He could have bribed his way through officials and made the whole thing disappear, made that CEO disappear too. But something was missing, and she wanted to know what. There had to be a very, very good reason if Park Chanyeol had decided to kill someone by his own hands.

 

"The answer to that is simple enough," he replied, laying down the food in front of her. It looked exquisite, and it smelled that way too. "CEO Jung threatened my family. And I can forgive anything or anyone under different circumstances. But if someone comes after my family- I killed him because he crossed that line."

 

 _For family, huh?_ Jungin tried to find that emotion inside her. If her family was threatened, would she kill for it? Her family wasn't actually an ideal example, and so she tried to find something in her life worth loving. At once, Jjangu and Monguu's faces filled her mind. She loved those balls of excitements. If anyone threatened them... she _might_ kill them.

 

She realized that she hadn't taken off her eyes form the man's face this whole time. He seemed to be reading her expressions too. Like he was waiting for her to get it. Truly, family could make a man become a killer. But was it justified to kill someone over that? If he really wanted revenge, he could have done it a thousand different ways. Exhibit 1, hand him over to the police.

 

Chanyeol seemed to have guessed her thoughts because he chuckled softly. The sound reminded her of that night, but now that she saw him, she was again struck by how flawlessly handsome he looked with his lips stretched in smile. It unnerved her, the angelic features of this man. His acts were totally against the looks. She told herself to not trust the face, to be vary. But that chuckle made his face glow with a strange warmth that was hard to resist. _Charisma,_ that's what it was. He must be a very popular Vice President if he could show his charms so faultlessly.

 

"CEO Jung was a demonic man. I hate to be so biased but he deserved a lot worse than what I gave him. If I had thrown him to wolves and watched him being shredded down to his bone - then maybe I would have been satisfied. No, I gave him a quick death instead. A very easy way out."

 

"So he was a bad guy, many people are bad. That doesn't mean you have to kill them." She took up the chopsticks and tasted the soupy-pasta. The taste exploded in her mouth and she nearly wept. It was so good. Almost as good as D.O's cooking.

 

"I mean he was very bad," Chanyeol sat down and started eating too. "He used to abuse his wife and daughter. Although I can't prove it. But there's a chance that he also assaulted his daughter in a ... sexual way."

 

Jungin tried to remain calm. But that piece of information made her flinch. She could feel it again, her father's fingers wrapped around her throat, cutting off her screams. She blinked against the memory. "No proof, huh?"

 

"The police is busy finding out even as we speak. I left them breadcrumbs, they can do the rest." Chanyeol was sitting straight and Jungin had almost seen him bring his hands close, almost like he was trying to pray before he started his meal. Like this, he looked like a completely normal man. But his words were harsh. "That isn't all. He used his ties with our company to instigate a lot of shady deals. Drugs and prostitution. There's also a chance that he was involved in smuggling the underage women form the third world countries. Basically, everything bad that he did was going to end being linked to me and my father's company. When he ran out funds, he tried to threaten us with the things he'd done. But since it was done using our name and our money, you understand how that would have gone, don't you?"

 

She tried to think rationally about it. But yeah, everything was bad and scandalous. That _still_ didn't mean he had to kill the man.

 

"If I had chosen a legal route to solve this, it would have been like inviting the vultures down on us. He'd done his work well, and no matter how I tried to prove it, we would have been guilty of the crimes we didn't commit." Chanyeol was using his normal tone. Like they were discussing weather. He didn't sound angry or evil. He just... "I should have thought of something else, I know. I could have asked someone else to handle him. But that night I had just found out the truth you see. I was raging and angry. Before I even made my mind up, I was perusing him and... Even when I put the bullets in him, I wanted to do more. Hurt him more. Make him scream in his death. It was really hard to just take what he'd stolen and walk away."

 

Jungin shivered as she remembered that night. He'd been angry, she'd heard it loud and clear. And she also remembered the look of pure loathing Chanyeol casted the dead body. But she also remembered that furtive gesture that she'd seen him do just moments ago, his hands coming together in a quick, barely-there prayer. He'd knelt by the dead CEO and then he'd prayed briefly. Even if he was angry, he'd done that.

 

"Are you religious?" she asked softly. Personally speaking, she'd stopped believing that there was any deity out there to save her and make her happy. But she wasn't cruel to those who still believed. It just meant that whoever the deity was, he or she liked that person more than they liked Jungin.

 

"Aren't you?" he asked back, like he was shocked that she'd asked something so basic. She gave him a black look. He tilted his head. "Sorry. That was... Yeah, I am religious."

 

Vice President. Handsome as hell. Rich, given the state of his home and clothes. Strong, as she still remembered how easily he'd handled her, saved her form the crazy waves. And religious. He was like the definition of perfect man. He was like those men who appeared on pamphlets with their arms crossed and backs leaning against the luxury cars, the pamphlets that ensured happy and secure lives. That ensured rich lives.

 

 _I shouldn't trust him._ She had to remind herself again.

 

"Is there anything else you'd like to know?" he asked. His shoulders were relaxed as he concentrated on eating and chewing.

 

"Tell me about your family."

 

At first it looked like he'd refuse, but then his lips stretched in a genuine, perfect smile. His eyes danced. "My family? Oh they're the best. Mother is literal angel. And my little sister is literal devil, except when she wants me to buy her something. My father is stern and strict, but even he has his moments. Sometimes, he laughs and his belly wobbles."

 

But he had more to say. About his mother's cooking and his sister's bad habits with chewing her nails and his father's constant struggle with drinking too much. He talked about them in detail, his hands had started moving, expressing his feelings about the subject. And through it all, his smile didn't waver. His eyes continued to sparkle and dance. Like he was a child. A child trapped in a huge body.

 

Jungin had to fight every hard against the desire to smile as he spilled even more hilarious facts here and there. The desire to just stare at him. _Why... why did he have to be so..._

 

They finished eating, and Chanyeol wrapped up talking about his family. Jungin felt like she knew everything about them.

 

He could multitask, too. Speaking in length about his sister's prom night from hell, he gathered the dishes and washed then dried them before replacing them in cabinets. He also wiped the counters and double checked the tap. He didn't wear an apron and the front of his shirt was slightly splattered. But he didn't seem to care as he came around the kitchen island and started leading Jungin towards the room she'd seen through the windows. The reading room. The library was big enough, but she was still impressed by the silence and the view - the same one as her room. _My room... no that isn't my room._

 

Chanyeol grabbed a magazine and flopped down on the sofa. "This is where I spent most of my time while you were out cold. Sorry about that again."

 

She picked up the folded newspaper at random and took the window seat. Mostly to stare at the view, but she was starting to feel a trickle of irritation. She was suddenly fed up with this. She shouldn't have stayed, she shouldn't have been curious. It was bitchy of her to feel so upset after hearing about his family. He was rich and handsome and he'd murdered a guy. He'd kidnapped her. He wasn't the worst of all, but he was still a bad person. How come he got to have a nice family and money but she was left to fend for herself? The injustice was too hard to even think about.

 

Her irritation must have slipped out somehow, because he asked, his voice a decibel softer, "Look, I just want to help myself. I admit that. But I won't cause you any trouble."

 

She turned to look at him, and caught something on his face, in his eyes. It was there for just a moment, but it was so intense and bare that she had been able to see it clearly. Want. No matter what he said, his eyes betrayed him. He said he didn't want her that way, but he was lying. _I shouldn't have trusted him. I should've run when I had the chance._

 

Then again, there was another way to see if he was lying or not. "You said you'd let me out. That I can go anywhere I want on the island."

 

"Yes," he sat up straighter. "I will allow that."

 

She didn't have a phone. When she'd met D.O and gone through the identity change, he'd taken her phone for safekeeping. But, as lonely as this island felt, there must be others here. People she could ask for help. Heck, she could just make a single call _and...._

 

"When should we leave?" he interrupted her thoughts.

 

"Whenever feels right-" she stopped. He'd said _we._ As in - the two of them together.

 

His face became serious. "I didn't promise to make you go alone. I mean, I am keeping you here in order to keep myself safe."

 

"You're keeping me as a prisoner."

 

"No. The agent you ran from was keeping you locked up. I, on the other hand, am willing to show you around. There's a difference."

 

"Yeah, there is. With the Agent, it was my choice. But you've taken me without my consent. You even made my dogs..." her heart clenched as she remembered her dogs again. She didn't know if they were okay, or alive. Had they been maltreated by the vicious strays? What if they get mistaken for mad dogs and get put down by the authorities?

 

Again, she could feel it again, that pressure building inside. Her breaths were coming heavily. She could feel the darkness coming up again.

.

.

 

Chanyeol was beside her at once. He was really curious about why she was having panic attacks. Was this a mental condition, or just a result of being taken without her consent? Whatever the reason he knew that he had to make her feel comfortable somehow. He took her hands, they were cold, and rubbed them. She was taking deep breaths, her eyes closed. She was so real in this moment that he couldn't help it and just stare. He watched her until her breaths were normal and her eyes fluttered open.

 

He wasn't fast enough to look away. He wondered what she'd seen in him, and why he saw anger flash in her eyes as she yanked her hands from his grip. "Can't I be alone for a while?"

 

He stood up and considered this. He threw an anxious look towards the cliff face again. The window was locked, but she would be able to open it easily. What if she tried to drown herself again?

 

"I won't do that again," she said, her voice was shaky. "It was... unpleasant."

 

Chanyeol couldn't understand this girl and why he was being so obsessive over her. But she was trying to trust him despite everything. Maybe, he should learn to trust her to? He silently walked out of the library and left the door wide open. He went to the living room and turned on the t.v. Browsing the channels idly, he was again lost in thought.

 

Earlier, he hadn't expected her to ask about his family. For a minute he'd been completely thrown off guard. He didn't know what to say. In the end, he started talking about the family from when he was still a child, when he didn't have any responsibilities. He made it sound like it was the current situation of his family, when in reality, it was just a compilation of the happiest memories he could remember. He didn't know if he could tell her the real things; the fact that his sister was a druggie and his mother was slowly but surely losing herself to drinks. And that his father loved money more than he loved Chanyeol. That one of the reasons he'd killed CEO Jung was because he was terrified of what his father would do to him if he realized that the information was taken from right under Chanyeol's nose. He'd done it out of terror, out of cowardice.

 

He didn't know why, he just wanted to her to see something other than the man who killed. Of course, that still wouldn't erase the reality. But maybe, she would be less scared of him than she was right now.

 

And her dogs, he groaned into his palms. He'd abandoned the dogs because there's no way to kidnap someone with two dogs. Not alone anyway. It was one of many indicators of how badly executed it was. He had no plan, he'd just taken her on a split second decision, and he was only beginning to understand the consequences of it now.

 

He settled on a movie and tried to think less about the way Jungin's hair shifted with her slight movements and how much he wanted to run his fingers through it, and more on the positive things. He knew that the trail had already come and gone, and Jungin had been absent. Without any witness, he was sure that no further action would be required. Still he sent a brief text message to his lawyer, asking about the situation.

 

He sat still as he felt movements inside the library. Jungin was browsing the shelves and reading the titles. It was hard to guess what her expression was. And then he caught himself. _Stop staring at her._ It was easier said than done. As long as Jungin was in front of him, he'd be unable to take his eyes off her.

 

Then she came outside and joined him in front of the t.v. There was a space of the whole sofa between them, they sat on each end. But Chanyeol felt his pulse spike. He kept himself focused on the screen, where the hero was finally admitting to the heroin why he had refused to marry her older sister. It was a love confession really, but it was hard to watch the tears and sobs of the heroin. He wondered f lying to Jungin was actually a good thing. She seemed like a girl who'd been lied to too many times before.

 

Guilt clogging his throat, he started speaking, "Actually, my mother is a drunk waste of space. And my sister is spending all her money in overdosing herself, I wouldn't even be surprised if one of these days we find her dead somewhere. As for my father, he's a money-hungry hyena. The only thing he likes about me is that I'm the male heir to his empire. He dragged me out of college once he knew I could do simple addition and multiplication without fucking up. I don't even have a degree to my name, you know. Everything I do, everything I am, is to please my father's insatiable lust for power. And that night I was just saving my own ass. CEO Jung was a swine but I was even more deplorable. I hate that our first meeting had to be like that."

 

He didn't dare look at Jungin. He didn't want to see even more hatred there. "As for why I kidnapped you? Well, because I am a coward who couldn't face you. That wasn't the first time I saw you. I knew your face because I had someone send me the CCTV footage of you entering and leaving the police station. And the moment I saw you, I recognized that strange void inside you. I felt that we were similar, living a life that we didn't want but we have no choice but to keep going. Because despite all I've put you through, I also admire you for your courage. Even after I kept hallucinating of you. And that night, I was drunk and I didn't know which park it was - and out of nowhere, you were there. I took my chance and - I just wanted to be close to you. I want us to be something _more..._ even if we are just friends. I know, I am asking for _too_ much."

 

Now, he finally turned to face her. And he didn't see any hate, just pity. She pitied him. It wasn't the emotion he hoped for, but at least it was something other than hate.

 

"You are attracted to me, even though you said that you didn't want to..."

 

Chanyeol sighed. "Yeah, you are very attractive. The most amazing woman I'd ever seen, and trust me I've been a lot of women. But no, I won't touch you at all. No matter how much I want to. Because if we are together anytime in future, I want it to be something that _you_ want. Not something I that forced you to do."

 

Jungin looked away. "Am I staying in the same room I woke up in?"

 

"Yep."

 

She stood up to leave. But before she disappeared, she said, "I really hope you can feel differently after a while. I don't want to be with someone like you."

 

Once alone, he turned off the t.v. He hadn't expected anything from her. And he wasn't rude enough to assume that she'd forgive him and fall into his arms. But he still smiled. At least, he'd told her the truth. Anything that happened now, will be on her terms alone.

 

He was about to go do something else when his phone started ringing. It was his lawyer. He picked up the call.

 

"Park-ssi, I have a bad news for you regarding the case."

 

"Go on," Chanyeol said, walking further away from the living area.

 

"It's true that the trail didn't go well because the witness wasn't present but they managed to buy a month. And the police department is exhausting every resource trying to solve this thing. To make matters worse, they have reestablished the ex-detective on the case. You do realize who I am talking about?"

 

It took Chanyeol a moment to understand. The infamous ex-detective. The detective who'd been demoted because Chanyeol had pulled some strong strings. The detective, who'd almost cracked down on his father's underground business a few years back. The detective, Chanyeol gritted his teeth, who'd killed Chanyeol's only friend in cold blood.

 

"Who?" he asked, because hearing that name again would give him the strength he needed to finish the bastard off.

 

"Do Kyungsoo, though, he was undercover with the name D.O for a while."

 

_D.O._

 

Chanyeol remembered that file B had sent ages ago. The agent who was taking care of Jungin. His blood boiled, as he disconnected the call. He wasn't a bad person really, and he wasn't a killer. But now - _I'm sorry Jungin. It seems like I have to kill again. Just one more time._

 

Instead, his fingers dialed the extremely familiar umber. It was turned off. He called again and again, but to no avail. _Goddamnit B, turn on the phone!_

**Author's Note:**

> To be continued...


End file.
